Catnip
by mabelreid
Summary: Sometimes we need someone or something else to help us grieve.  For Reid and Garcia, that means taking care of Sergio and in doing so, the three of them learn to cope with the loss of their friend
1. The Forgotten One

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n the first few chapters of this story take place between JJ's announcement of Emily's death at the hospital and her funeral. Spoilers for "Lauren and for epispodes between "Sense Memory and Lauren" Many thanks to my beta for givning me the idea for this story in the first place. I hope you enjoy it. _**

**_The Forgotten One_**

He couldn't believe it. He just couldn't wrap his head around it. It couldn't be true because it wasn't supposed to happen, not to her. He jumped up and headed toward the door where JJ stood with tears trembling in her eyes. He had to see it for himself and know it was real.

She stopped him, drawing him into her arms. "I didn't get a chance to say goodbye." He said in a trembling and watery voice before giving into sobs that wracked his body.

JJ let him cry for a while. Her fingers stroked his back and shoulders like a mother comforting her child. He didn't want to let go of her, but eventually he had to when she pulled away. She smiled at him when their bodies separated, smiled through her own tears. "Spence…" She began to say.

"No!" He held up a hand and shook his head. "I can't handle this." He squeaked.

She didn't attempt to stop him when he surged around her and left the waiting area. He wanted so badly to invade the operating room, or even the morgue to see her, but he couldn't make his feet take him in that direction. Instead, he left the hospital and went back to his lonely apartment.

He ignored all of them when they tried to see him or call him. He just sat on his battered couch with his knees up to his chest and replayed the last conversation he'd had with Emily. An entire day went by with him not eating and only getting up when he absolutely needed water or the bathroom

He couldn't stop thinking about the time he'd call her, excited to invite her to see "Solaris" with him in its original Russian. She'd turned him down, but it was okay because he assumed it wouldn't be the last time they had a chance to go out. If he'd only had some little clue that something was wrong.

He rocked back and forth on his couch, in the early morning hours, like a small child badly in need of his mother. Images forced their way into his head, but he ignored them in favor of thinking back to that same conversation. There had to be some clue in it that he should've recognized and acted upon. If he had, then she'd still be here. He might have found the way to get to her in enough time for them to save her life.

He ran the words through his head again, finally stopping at something that got through the staggering grief in his head.

"_Reid…" _

"_Emily… You are not going to believe this." _

"_No?"_

"_They're showing Solaris tonight, the original in the theaters. Do you wanna go?" _

"_Did Morgan put you up to this?"_

"_What?"_

"_Did Morgan tell you to call me?"_

"_Morgan doesn't know what Solaris is." _

"_So you just called me out of the blue." _

"_Well the original Solaris is in Russian, so really you and I are the only ones that can really enjoy it." _

"_Isn't Solaris like four hours long?"_

"_It's five…the best sci-fi meditation film of all time, but for some reason they never show it in the theaters. You wanna go with me?" _

"_Sorry handsome, I'm going to have to pass. I'm just going to hang out with Sergio tonight." _

"_Oh shoot I didn't realize that -" _

"_Relax Reid, Sergio is my new cat, but um… thank you." _

"_For what?"_

"_For being you." _

"_Ah, thanks but I don't know how to be anyone else." _

"_Yeah… that's what I love about ya." _

"_Bye."_

He just couldn't stop analyzing the conversation in his head, the way she assumed Morgan had put him up to asking her and how she said thank you for being him, as if she was trying to say good-bye. Was she trying to give him advanced warning? He didn't know and now would never know because she was gone.

Something niggled at him as he kept replaying the words over in his head. It was like he was forgetting something important. For a long time he couldn't figure out what was bothering him. Then it hit him hard like a bolt from heaven. Emily had a new cat. He stopped rocking and sat up straight. The cat was probably in her apartment by himself wondering why she hadn't come back. Cats were smart. They knew when something was wrong. He frowned. He couldn't do anything about the cat. Emily probably had someone to take care of him when she was gone.

_She didn't know she was going to die! _

He bit his lip and began rocking. Animals didn't like him, so there was nothing he could do but call Garcia. She'd know what to do. He looked at his watch and realized that it was four in the morning. He'd been sitting there going over his memories for four hours straight. His legs protested when he unfolded them to stand up and the headache, which had receded back a bit, was coming back vigorously. He wondered if he could sleep, then decided to make some coffee and wait to call Garcia.

It was six am sharp when he dialed her number. The phone rang and rang until her voice said. "This better be good or I'll make you wish you'd never met the Goddess of the Information Superhighway."

"Garcia." He squeaked.

"Reid… Are you crazy? Do you know what time it is?"

"I'm sorry. I couldn't sleep and I have a problem."

"We all have a big problem sweet cheek. Go back to bed. Hotch said we have the next week off and frankly I don't want to talk to anyone."

"I'm sorry… I was just thinking about Emily and," he tried to choke back a sob, but didn't quite make it.

"Oh honey…" He heard tears gather in her voice like storm clouds on the horizon.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to make you sad again." He apologized, feeling like an insensitive jackass.

"It's alright Reid. Why don't you come over here for breakfast? I'll never get back to sleep now."

"Are you sure?" He squeaked against sudden tears.

"Yeah… as long as you bring coffee from Starbucks."

"You got it."

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"I can believe I let you talk me into this." She hissed as they walked down the hallway to Emily's apartment behind the manager.

"I didn't know what else to do. We can't just leave her cat there." Reid whispered back.

Garcia sighed. She couldn't stay mad at him for any length of time. He was too cute. She sighed again and smacked him lightly on the arm as the manager opened the door. "You owe me." She said.

The alarm was disabled, probably from when Rossi and Morgan were there looking for clues. Reid wondered why they hadn't said anything about the cat.

"Thank you…." Garcia was saying to the manager.

"No problem… I liked Ms Prentiss. She never gave me no trouble." He said with a heavy Brooklyn accent. "You need anything, you just ask for Rocky."

"Do you know anything about her cat?"

"Naw... Only that she asked me a few weeks ago if she could have a cat. I said it was fine with me though I don't like cats. They make me sneeze." He stood outside the door as though waiting for a rattlesnake to jump out and bite him."

It was incongruous with the man who stood about five ten, about two fifty with graying and receding hair, but had the attitude of 'don't mess with me or you'll be sorry' about him.

"You don' have to come in. We'll just look around to see if he's here." Garcia soothed.

"I know that sometime Ms Stowe in 312 takes care of him when Ms Prentiss has to go outta town for a few days on cases."

"Thank you." Reid said.

Rocky shut the door and left them to Emily's apartment. Garcia didn't say anything as they made their way down the entry hall to her bedroom. The half-drawn curtain allowed the early morning sun to stream into the room. The place was tidy after Rossi and Morgan had been there and CSIs after her death. It didn't look like a crime scene. In fact, to Reid it looked like she might come home at any second. More tears welled up in his eyes.

"I don't know if I can do this." Garcia said.

"I'm sorry I made you come in here with me. I didn't realize how hard it would be to see her place."

She engulfed him in a hug. She kissed his cheek and he knew he'd have a bright red lip print on his face, but he didn't care.

She looked around. "Alright, if I'm a cat where do I hide? Sergio." She called out.

"Cats don't respond to names like dogs." Reid said.

"Well then let's try this, here kitty-kitty-kitty."

They waited and then Reid decided to stoop down to look under the bed. There was nothing there but dust. He was beginning to think this was a waste of time, when Garcia said, "Oh there you are. Oh you are a pretty kitty."

He stood up to see a black cat perched on the windowsill staring at him as if it wanted to hypnotize him into leaping out the window. It swished its tail and hissed at Reid, the fur standing up on its back.

"Um… hello Sergio."

The cat leaped down, hurried over to Garcia where it weaved in-between her legs, and meowed, all the while keeping its dark eyes glued to Reid.

"He hates me." Reid said.

"Don't be ridiculous. Cats don't hate people."

Garcia picked him up. "You're just hungry and missing Emily. Aren't you pretty kitty?"

The cat arched its head under her scratching fingers. His eyes closed so Reid felt like he could take a step closer to him. The cat's eyes snapped open. He yowled at Reid, leaped out of Garcia's arms and ran out of the room.

"Hey…"

"Sorry, I told you he doesn't like me."

"Well let's go find him."

"What are we going to do when we find him?"

She stared at him through purple framed glasses that matched her tunic blouse with pink and yellow tulips silk screened on the front.

"_We're _not doing anything. This was your idea. You dragged me out of bed at the crack of dawn on a day I don't have to work and the morning after Emily…" Her breath began to hitch as tears gathered in her eyes. "You're taking the cat home with you."


	2. Hide and Seek

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_ Hide and Seek_**

Reid stood in the kitchen looking at the shopping bags sitting on his table. He should be unpacking, but he couldn't make his hands reach out and open the first bag. It was Garcia's idea and her fault. This wasn't what he wanted when he'd called her that morning. It wasn't supposed to go like this.

He sighed and stepped up to the table. He was alone in this crazy undertaking. Garcia had promised him she'd help if he needed it and then she'd left him alone, with a cat that hated him. How was he supposed to deal with a cat that didn't want anything to do with him?

He frowned. It wasn't Sergio's fault. It was Emily's fault for leaving them alone. His stomach jumped. He shouldn't be thinking like that about Emily. It wasn't her fault.

_Yes, it was her fault. She was supposed to depend on you for help. She didn't even ask._

_She wanted to protect us. _

_Why did she get to make that kind of decision, to leave them out? It wasn't fair._

He sniffed back new tears and opened one of the bags. He'd take care of Sergio for Emily. Maybe one day the cat would like him. He unpacked a bag of all natural cat food, a collar, a litter box and a bag of litter that promised to have ingredients that blocked odor. They'd also bought Sergio's water and food dish from Emily's apartment and another half bag of food and cat treats. Garcia also found some cat toys and a scratching pole.

He didn't know where to put all the stuff. He scratched his nose and decided to store it in the most logical places. He'd never had a pet, so he thought it was best to put the water and food bowls in the kitchen. Emily had kept the cat food in the space under her sink so he decided that was a good place for it. He put the treats in a cupboard next to some storage and garbage bags.

He noticed that Emily had kept the litter box in her little laundry area. He decided that was the only place he could put it was his bathroom, because he didn't have that much room in his place.

When he arranged everything to his satisfaction, he carefully washed his hands and went looking for Sergio. When Garcia had carried him in the apartment, he'd jumped out of her arms again and disappeared. Everything he read said that cats were self-reliant for the most part. They'd let you hold them when they wanted to be held.

Still… Sergio didn't like him, so the possibility of the cat paying him any attention was thin. He suddenly wanted the cat there. It was weird because normally he really didn't like cats or dogs that much.

"Hey Sergio." He called out from the kitchen.

Then mentally kicked himself for yelling the cat's name, as he told Garcia, cats responded to names when it suited them. _If they don't respond then why do people give them names? _He wondered, as he left the kitchen to go look for the cat. He supposed it was some kind of anthropomorphizing response.

"Here kitty." He yelled, feeling like an idiot.

The cat didn't reappear as he had for Garcia. Well… He'd just take it by process of elimination. He knew how to search a home after all. He'd participated in many searches in his career. It couldn't be that difficult to find a cat in a small apartment.

He decided to start at the back in his bedroom. There were many good places to hide in a bedroom for a cat. He looked under the bed first, but didn't find anything besides dust and a box of old graphic novels he'd read years ago.

The next place was the closet. The door was tight shut but he looked inside anyway. When he and Garcia had to search for Sergio the second time, they'd found him in the pantry sitting perched on an unopened bag of sugar.

The cat wasn't in his closet. He searched the bathroom, then the kitchen and finally under the couch in the living room. The cat was nowhere to be found and he didn't respond to "Here kitty." In fact, Reid was beginning to feel just a little ridiculous calling out to a stubborn cat. He frowned again. None of the stuff he'd read on cat suggested that they could get out of locked apartments. He checked the door anyway. It was still locked and he felt like an idiot.

He decided to sit down and think. Rational, logical thought had never failed him before, so it would work this time. Fifteen minutes later, he had to admit defeat. The cat was somewhere hiding and he would come out when he wanted to. Ten minutes later while he was in the middle of reading a new book, he had what he thought was an idea worthy of a genius. He'd put food in Sergio's bowl and put it near the couch. The cat had to be hungry and he'd come out of hiding for the food. Reid would show him there was nothing to be stressed about living here. He wouldn't try to pick him up. He'd just let the cat decide what he wanted to do. Nodding to himself at his brilliant idea, he went to the kitchen for the bowl and the cat food.

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Reid woke up several hours later. He looked around and sighed in frustration. Lately it seemed like he couldn't sleep unless he stretched out on the bench seat of the jet, or on the couch. If he went to his room, got ready for bed, and laid down, it was like his brain said, "Ah no… Not sleeping, not tired, don't care what you want."

He shook his head to clear the last remnants of sleep as he swung his legs around to a sitting position. The sudden realization that he'd forgotten something made him sit up straight. He turned, climbed over to the arm of the couch and looked over the side. The dish he'd left sitting there with cat food for Sergio was empty. He stared at it wondering how he hadn't seen this coming.

Sergio obviously wasn't a stupid feline. He'd come into the room when he knew Reid was asleep and emptied the bowl. Now the cat was gone back into hiding again, so much for the brilliant idea of trapping the cat with its hunger.

_If you'd slept last night, this wouldn't have happened._

He grumbled all the way into the kitchen with the cat's dish in his hands. He put it next to its mate the water dish and washed his hands again. His stomach rumbled loudly. He decided that if the cat could eat, then so could he. He'd just go about his business and when Sergio decided to come out of hiding, he would find that Reid was ignoring him.

He nodded his head and went to the refrigerator to see if he had anything edible or if he'd have to call out for delivery.

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When the doorbell rang, it startled him out of his concentration on a new book. The prospect of food, a glass of water, and the nap had conspired to reduce his headache to a dull roar so he'd decided to take advantage of tine to read.

He opened the door to the delivery person and was in the act of paying him, when a loud meow made both of them jump. A black blur raced between them, almost knocking the delivery guy to the floor.

"Hey…" Reid yelled. "Sergio."

"What the hell was that?" The kid said.

"A cat." Reid squeaked in a way that said the kid should know the evidence of his eyes.

"Man I hate black cats." He grabbed at the bills in Reid's hands, shoved the pizza at him and fled.

"Hey…"

Reid stood there holding the hot, wonderful smelling pizza, staring at the hallway where just minutes ago Sergio had disappeared. Well there was nothing for it. He'd have to go after the cat although he didn't know how he'd find him if the cat got out the doors to the stairs or on the elevator.

He left the pizza perched on the nearest chair and hurried out the door in search of his fugitive cat. As it was he didn't have far to look. He rounded the corner to his left and stopped in shock at the sight that presented itself to his eyes.


	3. Violet

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_Violet _**

Reid stopped in the middle of the hallway in utter shock. At the end of the hall in front of 3E, stood a very small woman with short raven black hair that stood up in spikes. She held Sergio in her arms and cooed at the cat like he was a small baby. Sergio didn't seem to mind the stranger holding him. In fact, he reminded Reid of a statue he'd seen in an Egyptian exhibit in the DC Metro museum.

He coughed into his hand, but the girl didn't look up. The cat looked at him with an expression that seemed to indicate he was laughing at Reid. How could a complete stranger charm this particular cat? It didn't make sense at all.

"Excuse me…"

The girl finally looked up from the cat. Her eyes were a light blue that contrasted with her dark hair and pale skin in a way he'd never seen. He adjusted his opinion on her age as well. She was a lot younger than he first thought. He thought she might be about fourteen.

"Oh hi," she said. "Who're you?"

He swallowed hard and said. "I live in 3B, my name is Dr. Reid, I mean Spencer Reid."

The girl laughed. "Is this your cat? I've never seen it before."

"Um no, well, yeah I guess he is."

She cocked her head as Sergio continued to stare at him with baleful eyes. "So which is it?" She prodded.

"Well… He belongs to Em - I mean he belonged to a friend." He stopped and chewed on his lower lip.

He didn't want to tell her that Emily was dead. He didn't even like to hear it in his thoughts. He decided on a convenient lie.

"I'm taking care of him for a friend until she comes home."

"You're not doing a very good job." She popped a bubble from her gum. "If my mom hadn't locked me out again, then your cat might be on the elevator and on his way out of the building right now."

"Right… Thanks, so when is your mom coming home?

"I don't think I should say more to a stranger." She responded as her hand scratched at Sergio's neck.

He didn't know what to say to that, so he held out his arms for Sergio. The cat hissed and twisted in the girls arms.

"He doesn't seem to like you very much."

Her statement of the obvious irritated him irrationally and heat rose to his face. "Well I have to take care of him so -"

"Why don't I take him back to your place?" She suggested.

He wanted to protest, but the cat was trying to jump out of her arms now that he'd gotten close. Therefore, he backed off and led her around the corner and back to his apartment.

"I should take him." Reid said eyeing the cat intently.

"I'll take him inside?" She said firmly after popping another bubble.

"I don't think that's wise. Um, I'm single and everyone knows I live here alone." He stammered, feeling his face burn like an oven on broil.

She laughed and looked around the hall. "No one's around. If you haven't noticed, it's three pm on a weekday. No one's home from work yet, which is why I'm stuck outside. Anyway you don't seem like the child molester type."

"What! No! Of course not," he opened the door and let her into the apartment.

She let Sergio down only when the door was shut behind them. He tore off for his hiding place leaving Reid and the girl standing there.

"Um thank you…" He said, not moving from his spot.

"He really doesn't like you." She repeated.

"I know… Why do you keep repeating it?" He asked a little testily.

"Sorry…" She replied, "I didn't know it was such a sensitive issue."

He watched her look around his living room. He shouldn't just stand there. He should be calling child services or the police, but his head hurt too much to think about dealing with them.

"Nice room," she said.

He cocked his head. Morgan said he often missed it when someone spoke with sarcasm or teased him. She didn't have the face of someone sincere. He frowned and looked around. Just because his furniture was battered and didn't match, didn't mean it wasn't a comfortable room.

"Can I go now?" She asked impatiently.

"Where're you going to go if you're locked out?"

She shrugged and popped another bubble. "The same place I always go, down to the club house. I can watch TV there."

"Um… Maybe I should call your mom."

"No! She works and she'll be mad if you call her. Besides… I'm not a baby. I'm almost fifteen."

He knew he should have a response to that, but he couldn't think of anything to say. His headaches made it difficult to react.

"So can I go?"

He nodded. "Um, yeah, so um if your mom doesn't come home you can come tell me or something."

She laughed. "I don't need a babysitter. See ya around. Hope the cat decides you're okay."

"Hey…"

"What?"

"What's your name?"

"Why do you want to know?"

He managed a little smile. "I'm just trying to be polite."

"My name's Violet."

He gave her one of his little waves, "It's nice to meet you, Violet."

"See ya around, Dr. Reid."

With that, she left the apartment and a very confused Reid. He turned around and called for Sergio, who ignored him as before, but at least he wasn't trying to escape. The pizza was growing cold when he went to pluck the box off the couch. He ate it anyway.

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Garcia was putting the final changes on new curtains for her bedroom window when her cell phone rang. She narrowed her eyes at the ring tone. What could possibly be wrong now? She crossed the room to the strains of "Too Shy," and snatched up the phone.

"What do you want sweet cheeks? I'm drowning my sorrows with a new sewing project."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay sugar. What's bothering you?"

"You mean besides the fact that Emily is dead. We should've realized she was in trouble."

"She loved us. She wanted to protect us. We were her family."

"I know… I just can't stop thinking that I should've known something was wrong."

"You're a genius, but it's not your job to know all."

He didn't say anything for a minute. Garcia wiped at new tears in her eyes. The skin around her eyes was raw and her nose hurt from blowing it, but it was better than no tears at all. No tears would mean her heart was healing. She didn't want it to heal, not yet.

"Reid… Are you there?"

"Yeah, um I'm sorry to bother you, but I can't find Sergio."

She almost felt like laughing for the first time in days. "What do you mean? What happened to him?"

"He hates me!"

"I told you he doesn't hate you. He's just wondering what happened to Emily. He's confused."

"There was a study where they determined that cats have the intelligence of an 18 month old child."

"Now that's the Reid I know. "

"So what do I do? He tried to run away when I opened the door for a pizza delivery."

"You're going to have to figure it out on your own Reid."

"I thought maybe you could take him. I'm going to be gone a lot and -"

She cut him off abruptly. "We argued about this once today. I can't have cats in my apartment full time without paying an extra fee every month. You, on the other hand, don't have a fee for pets. Besides, I know how much you cared for Emily. You need Sergio."

"I don't understand." He squeaked.

"Do you really think you can lie to me Reid?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Reid!"

"I gotta go. I need to find Sergio."

"I'm sorry baby cakes. I didn't mean to upset you."

"It's okay Garcia."

She listened to the silence after he disconnected the call. Tears began meandering down her face. She went to the newly hung curtains and touched the fabric. The bright color didn't soothe her soul, as she thought it would when she'd made them. All she could think about was that their family was fractured beyond repair and she'd give anything to have Emily back again.


	4. Sergio and his Human

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_Sergio and his Human_**

_Moonlight dappled shadows along the white sands of the beach like an old black and white photo. The surf lapped gently at the sands with a soft whooshing sound that soothed the ear. He lay on his back looking up at the inky black sky full of more stars than he'd ever seen in his life. They twinkled through the night sky as though someone had stitched diamonds into black velvet. He picked out every constellation that his father had shown him when he was three years old. His favorite, Andromeda, captured his attention focusing his eyes so intently that he couldn't see anything else. _

_Andromeda was said to be so beautiful that Demi-God Perseus, son of Zeus fell in love with her at first sight. He killed Medusa and saved Andromeda from a sea monster. He could understand Perseus and his love for the beautiful Andromeda. He'd fallen hard for the most beautiful woman he'd ever met. He'd been willing to do anything for her, but she'd pulled away to keep him safe. She'd sacrificed her life to keep her family safe and to protect a little boy from his evil father. _

_Tears ran out of his eyes and dripped onto the white, silky sand under his back. He loved and he hated her for her sacrifice. She wasn't supposed to go away without saying goodbye. She was supposed to trust them to help her. More tears slid down the sides of his face. He should've been braver. He should've forced her to tell him the truth in time to help her. _

_He stared up at the sky wishing that somehow he could turn back time and make her come back to him. A soft sound on the sand next to him pulled his eyes to the right. A figure stood there watching him. His heart began thumping so hard his head hurt. _

"_Who's there?"_

_The figure walked forward out of the shadows into the light of the moon and stars. His heart stopped as the face of the figure came into view. _

"_Emily?"_

_Her feet whispered over the sand, but didn't disturb it. She dropped down next to him wearing a flowing white gown that fell to her feet and left one shoulder bare like a Greek Goddess. _

"_How?"_

_She reached out and pressed a finger to his lips. "I'm sorry." She said and somehow her voice had taken on an unearthly tone that reminded him of ringing bells. _

"_I miss you." _

"_I know baby. I miss you to." _

"_Why didn't you let us help you?"_

_She lay down next to him on her side so that she faced him, her dark hair spread out on the sand. He turned his head and met her eyes. _

"_I had to protect you Reid." _

"_You should've let us help you." He insisted. "We need you." _

_She smiled. "The rest of the team doesn't need me." She said. _

_Amazingly, he didn't feel heat rushing into his cheeks. "I need you. I love you Emily. I'm sorry I didn't tell you when I had the chance. _

_She shifted and rolled on top of him. His arms came around her as she kissed him deeply. Her arms enclosed him and hugged him tight. "I love you too Reid." _

"_I wish you could come back." _

"_I can't Reid. I have to move on." _

"_I don't want you to go." _

_Her weight on his chest became a little uncomfortable. He shifted, but her arms held him tighter still in their embrace as she kissed him eagerly, lapping the inside of his mouth with her tongue. _

"_Emily…" _

_He tried to turn her over, but she held him down like rocks on his chest. He pulled his mouth away as the pressure on his chest increased. _

"_I can't breathe." _

_Her lips claimed his mouth again, devouring him as if she was starving. "Emily." He squeaked. _

_She licked his face and purred in his ear. "Reid." _

"_What are you doing?"_

His eyes stuttered open to see the dark grey of dawn in his bedroom and a pair of bright eyes inches from his face. "What the hell?"

He jumped back and Sergio leapt off his chest to the floor of his bedroom. He couldn't see the cat, but it hissed at him and yowled from the floor. He froze like a deer in the headlights despite the fact that it was a cat, not cougar in his room. Still… There was no way he was going to put his feet down on the floor with an angry cat on the loose. It wasn't logical, but he didn't care.

He sat there for ten minutes watching the sun move shadows on his wall and trying not to think what Morgan would say if he were there. Also… He marveled that he slept the whole night in his bed instead of the couch. How had that come about? He didn't know.

He finally threw off his comforter and stood up. No cat attacked his feet and he felt foolish. There was still the mystery of why the cat had been sitting on his chest. Was it trying to kill him by smothering him? He laughed at his foolish line of thought. Cats didn't try to kill people.

He went to the kitchen, stopping at the doorway when Sergio suddenly rushed by him to his food and water dishes. He meowed loudly at Reid.

"What do you want?" Reid asked tentatively as if talking to a particularly violent un-sub.

The cat just stared at him and meowed again. Reid narrowed his eyes at the cat. The cat didn't like him, but now it seemed like the cat expected him to just hop to and feed him. Okay… so it was kind of like dealing with a small child. If he gave the cat everything it wanted then the cat might decide it liked him and they could both relax.

He went to the cupboard under the sink and pulled out the bag of food. He filled the dish as Sergio stayed just out of his reach. He gave the cat fresh water and stood back. The cat fell on the food as if he was starving, growling as Reid tried to pet him.

"That's friendly."

The cat looked up as if he understood and hissed again.

Reid put up his hands and backed off. "Stay out of my bedroom." Reid ordered the cat, "And we'll get along just fine."

The cat went back to his breakfast.

Reid sighed and decided to make his first cup of coffee for the day. At least the cat had come out of hiding so that meant progress, right?

He sighed again as the coffee maker hissed and spat a few minutes later and felt overwhelming sadness slip inside his heart. Today was the day, he finally remembered. They were going to have Emily's funeral. He was going to be a pallbearer. He was going to carry her away to the cold, dark ground. It wasn't fair. He and the rest of the team would go on and she'd stay beneath the ground in the dark.

Oh God… He knew what happened to bodies that decomposed even if they were embalmed. He could picture it vividly in his head, happening to Emily. He shut his eyes tight and tried to make the pictures in his head go away, but they wouldn't just like the headache that had flared up as soon as he'd awoken that morning.

He looked over at the cat, who'd jumped up on the counter and stared at him as though daring him to say or do anything. He got up and went to the counter. "Get down from there."

The cat hissed and batted at him with a paw. Reid dropped his hands and stepped back. "Fine… Do what you want. You're a cat and you will anyway."

Sergio eyed him, meowed and jumped back down from the counter. "Thank you." Reid said.

_Why are you thanking the cat? _

He supposed it didn't matter because the cat wasn't walking where he prepared food for the occasional dinner and breakfast most mornings.

Sergio ran out of the kitchen. Reid started to follow him then stopped. If Sergio wanted to hide out somewhere and be alone, Reid could understand that. He wanted to hide away that day instead of going to a funeral.

Cats were lucky. They didn't have human emotions. They just liked you if you fed them and took care of them. They lived uncomplicated lives that he deeply envied.

He looked at the clock on the microwave. The time had come for him to get ready for the funeral. In a couple of hours she'd be in the ground and he'd have to find a way to get on with his life.


	5. A Funeral, A Cat and A Girl

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**_A/n hey all... Thank you all for your support in revewing, adding to your alerts and favorites. Here's the next chapter for your enjoyment. _**

**_A Funeral, A Cat, and A Girl_**

Garcia refused to leave the gravesite after the service ended. She ignored Morgan's entreaties that she leave. JJ and Hotch couldn't budge her from standing in front of the casket as it stood over the grave. Rossi tried to make her walk away but she wouldn't go. Reid was the first of them to leave, which surprised her because she knew his terrible, crippling grief. He missed Emily in a way she knew she couldn't understand. Reid was Reid and that meant no one really knew what was going on inside his head.

A slight wind lifted her bangs from her forehead, danced them around, and dropped them back. A warm breeze teased out the perfume from the roses surrounding Emily's grave. For the first time in her life, she hated the scent of roses.

"Garcia…"

His voice snapped her out of confused thought. She thought he'd left, but obviously he'd been waiting somewhere for the others to leave.

"Hey Reid."

"Um… Should we go?"

"Not yet," she hated the whiny tone of her voice, but she couldn't leave Emily there alone.

He didn't speak, just stood there next to her looking down at the coffin that seemed to say, "Your friend is gone forever."

She looked up at the trees swaying in the wind, and the green grass rustling against all the grey stones of the cemetery.

"It's not right." She whispered.

"What's not right?" Reid said.

"This," she flung out a hand and indicated the scene. "It should be raining, and grey and cold. The sun and the blue sky isn't right Reid."

"Most rain storms occur in summer in Virginia." Reid began. "The odds of it raining on a specific day in early March -"

"I don't care about average rainfall and the chances of a storm." Garcia raged at him. "It's too sunny and happy. It's not right for saying goodbye to Emily."

His puppy dog eyes filled with confusion and tears. "I don't understand how the weather has anything to do with it."

"You know what, it doesn't matter."

She slipped her hand into his, holding on when he tried to shy away. "Let's go."

He nodded and walked with her to her orange convertible, Esther. "I'm sorry I yelled at you sweet cheeks."

"It's okay. I just wish…"

She stood up on her toes and kissed his cheek. "I know… It's going to really suck for a while. Why don't we go have some lunch, my treat?"

"I don't think I'd be the best company." He declined.

"Why do you try? I thought I made it clear, once upon a time, that it doesn't do any good to argue with me."

"I remember," he smiled.

His smile faded as he hurried around to the passenger side of Esther. He stood there taking in one long last look in the direction of Emily's grave.

"Hey Reid."

She was smiling around her red cheeks and red-rimmed eyes. "Let's go eat and talk about all the good times."

"Yeah… That sounds good."

CMCMCM

Reid closed the door to his apartment after talking for three hours with Garcia about all the good times they'd had with Emily. He dropped his bag and went to the alarm. When he finished setting it, he turned around and stopped in utter surprise. There was white paper tangled on the floor, strewn over the couch and wound around his chair, and coffee table. It led out of the living room into the kitchen, then out again and back to his room then the bathroom. He picked it up and saw upon closer inspection that it was toilet paper. What the hell?

He looked around, automatically wishing he had his gun on his hip. He carefully checked out the apartment while picking up the toilet paper and winding it around his hands. Remarkably, it had stayed in one long piece from the roll. He'd just changed out for a new roll that morning, but checking the bathroom showed him that it was half-gone. He also saw that his tube of toothpaste lay on the tile floor. The waste paper basket near the toilet was turned on its side spilling out used dental floss, a dull disposable razor and a couple of Kleenex.

"What the hell?" He said aloud.

Had someone broken in and trashed the place. No, it couldn't be that, because it didn't look like someone had come in here with the intention of finding something or stealing from him. The only other possibility was the cat.

"Sergio." He yelled irritation at coming home from one of the worst days of his life to this mess. "Bad kitty."

Oh god… Morgan would laugh is ass off if he were here to see and hear him. In fact, he felt distinctly like a jackass yelling at the cat. It wasn't as if the cat would actually come running in with his tail between his legs and contrite. Cats just don't act like that he knew from his reading.

He pulled out his phone and dialed Garcia's number. The phone rang, but she didn't pick up. Then he remembered that she said something about trying to get some sleep, as they had to get back to work the next morning. He slapped his phone shut and went to the living room.

He was in the middle of trying to read a new book he'd bought three days before Emily died when someone knocked on his door. He looked out the peephole. The person on the other side of the door wasn't someone he expected to see.

Violet grinned at him when he opened the door, "Hi Dr. Reid."

"What are you doing here?"

She popped a pink bubble with a loud snap. "My mom's taking a nap. She has to work the night shift next week. She gave me specific orders not to make any noise. So I decided to come see Sergio. Can I come in?"

He opened his mouth to say no, and then changed his mind. Maybe if he observed the girl with Sergio he could learn something to help him get along with the cat.

"Um, sure, come inside."

She slipped inside and he noticed that her black hair, which had been spiky the last time he saw her was held back with a purple headband that matched her tee shirt.

"So did you just get back from a date or something?" She said perching on the arm of his couch.

"No! I mean I had lunch with a friend."

He knew his blush said otherwise, but he couldn't stop the heat from rising in his face even though there wasn't a reason for it.

"I knew it." Violet said. "You have a girlfriend. What's she like?"

"Why are we talking about me? Does your mother know you roam around when she's sleeping?" He challenged.

"I told you. She doesn't care about me. She doesn't give me a key when she works in the day because she's afraid if she leaves me alone in the apartment I'll mess it up. She's a neat freak with a serious germ phobia."

"What do you know about phobias?" He heard his mouth asking the girl.

"A phobia is an irrational fear of something like water, or clowns or spiders." She recited back as if from a textbook. "I like science."

"Me too…" He said eagerly. "What branch of science is your favorite?"

Sergio ran into the living room past Reid and jumped up into Violet's lap.

"Hey Sergio. What's going on?"

The cat stretched his neck under her scratching fingers. Reid watched to cat who seemed to stare at Reid in a way that irritated his new owner.

"Hey."

Reid looked up to see Violet looking at him like he was an annoying child. "I said I like biology."

"What?"

"You asked me what kind of science I like the best. Don't you remember? Are you one of those crazy people that live alone with a cat?

"No!" He said indignantly. "I'm not crazy?"

"You don't have to get so mad."

Sergio jumped out of her arms and walked to the end of the coffee table. He stood there staring at Reid with his tail twitching back and forth.

"Why do you keep staring at Sergio like he's the Devil's familiar? You don't believe black cats are bad luck do you?"

"Of course not. The color of a cat's fur has nothing to do with good or bad luck."

"Glad to hear it."

"What do you know about familiars anyway?" Reid asked suspiciously.

"I like scary movies and books about witches and magic."

"Does your mother know you read that stuff?"

Violet shrugged her shoulders. "She never asks about the books I read. She's too busy."

He felt like he should say something to empathize with her but he couldn't think of the right words to say. He sucked at dealing with girls, especially teenage girls.

"So why does Sergio look at you like you took away his favorite toy." She asked with uncommon insight.

"I told you I'm taking care of him for a friend. He's not used to it here."

Violet opened a little purple purse with the face of a kitten on the side that said "Hello Kitty." She opened it and pulled out a tiny toy mouse. "I brought a catnip toy for him."

"You didn't have to do that."

She frowned and he saw her blink back a tear. "It's okay. I used to have a kitty, but she ran away."

"I'm sorry." He twisted his fingers together and decided just to ask. It would be less humiliating. "Violet… Sergio really doesn't like me. Maybe you could help me with him."


	6. Progress

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hello faithful readers... Here's the next chapter. Please enjoy_**

**_Progress _**

"I don't know how to help you." Violet said after popping another bubble. "Cats either choose your companionship or they don't, you can't force it."

He sat in his ancient, battered, easy chair and regarded the cat who'd curled his tail around his body and was staring at Reid.

"So what do I do?" Reid asked Violet.

"You have to let him come to you." She said.

"That's not helpful."

She shrugged. "Why are you so uptight about it? Just take care of him until his owner comes back and then he'll be gone."

Reid shoulders slumped. He was going to have to tell her the truth if he wanted help. "My friend isn't coming back." He said softly looking at Sergio instead of the girl. "She died four days ago."

"Oh… That really sucks." Violet said.

"Does your mother know you use that kind of language?"

Violet just stared at him from her perch on the couch. Sergio meowed.

"Look, it's not a good idea for you to be here on your own." He stood up and went to the door. "If someone sees you here, especially for long blocks of time, they'll think something inappropriate is going on. You should leave and go home."

"No one cares what I do."

The false indifference in her tone made his heart thump. He didn't know what to do to help except confront her mother, but he promised he wouldn't do that. Hotch always told him to keep his promises to others. _Should he keep his promise rather then calling someone like a social worker?_

"You should go." He insisted. "I'll see you in the hallways. Thanks for the cat toy."

She stood up from the arm of the couch. "My friend in Chicago had two cats. One of them was very friendly. The other never showed his face unless it was time for dinner."

"So I should just ignore him."

"Give him the cat toy. Maybe he'll like his present."

She gave Sergio a look then went to the door.

"Thanks," Reid said.

"My cat didn't run away." She said suddenly. "She got out and got hit by a car in the parking lot. My mom thinks I don't know, but Johnny Cooper in 6F told me so." She wiped a tear away and walked out his door.

He turned back to see the cat sitting on his couch staring at him. "I got a present for you."

He went to the couch, but Sergio leaped off and ran around him. "Okay, but I think you'll like it."

He dropped it on the ground and sat down on the couch. For a few minutes, he only thought of Violet and Sergio instead of the constant pain in his head and his heart.

CMCMCM

Reid entered the living room after dinner to find Sergio batting the catnip mouse around. The cat looked up at him and meowed as if to warn him off. "I don't want your mouse." Reid said. "If it keeps you happy then I'm happy."

Sergio stopped playing with the mouse and went to the apartment door. He scratched at the door and meowed. "You can't go outside." Reid told him.

The cat only stared at him then curled up right next to the door. Reid began reading his book again. It took him much longer to finish because the headache, back after only a brief respite, distracted him. He put the book aside and looked around for Sergio. The cat sat next to the door staring at it as if expecting something.

"Are you waiting for Emily?" Reid said as a light suddenly went on his brain. "You do miss her, don't you?"

The cat meowed softly and swished his tail, but didn't look at Reid. He just watched the door. "I'm sorry Sergio. I can't bring her back for you."

The cat lowered his head again as though he needed a nap. Reid looked at the clock. It was only six pm but he was so tired. He couldn't think of anything to do so he turned on the television and tried to get Violet, Sergio and Emily out of his head.

CMCMCM

He woke on the couch again at around midnight. White light from the television stabbed the dark like a knife into flesh. He rubbed at his eyes and turned on the lamp. The lights blinded him for a minute. He heard a purring noise and looked down to see Sergio sleeping next to the couch.

Reid decided to see if he could at least pet the cat before it realized how close he was. He reached down and scratched the cat's neck as he had seen Violet do. The cat jerked, hissed at him and took off like a shot.

"So much for getting to know each other."

He sighed. The cat missed Emily. He wasn't Emily. He laughed. He was as far from being Emily as it was possible to be. She was smart, outgoing, fun and beautiful. He was smart. He put his chin in his hand and thought hard. Maybe Sergio and he could work out their grief together with Garcia. They all missed Emily so if they all got to be friends then they'd all feel better.

Sergio sat at the doorway to his bathroom when he passed by. "Good night Sergio." He said.

He was in the middle of taking off his shirt when Sergio entered the bedroom and jumped up on an easy chair Reid had installed in one corner of the room. The cat turned in three circles, laid down and began to stare at him.

"Are you speaking to me now?" Reid asked.

He wasn't sure how he felt about the cat sitting there staring at him, but this was progress so he didn't try to shoo him away. Sergio meowed softly then fell silent. After Reid finished undressing and putting on his sleep clothes he noticed the cat was asleep.

"Just so long as you don't end up on my chest again." He scolded softly.

CMCMCMCM

Reid woke to the simultaneous ringing of his alarm at 7am after enjoying a full nights rest for a change, and the buzzing of his telephone. They had a case. He frowned and began to dress. He'd hoped to have a day of paperwork to get used to being back to work without Emily. It wasn't to be and he'd have to deal with it. Sergio had disappeared again, but Reid didn't have time to go looking for him. He desperately needed some coffee and a shower.

When Reid came out of the kitchen half an hour later, he found Sergio sitting near the door again. He looked up at Reid and meowed.

"I'm sorry, I can't bring Emily back."

The cat meowed again as if to say he didn't believe Reid.

"It's true. She's dead Sergio. She can't come back."

The cat stretched arching its back and spreading its claws.

"Don't get mad at me." Reid said. "It wasn't my fault."

Sergio resumed watching the door with his tail switching back and forth. "Be a good kitty and don't try to run away again." Reid scolded as he pick up his go bag and messenger bag.

He suddenly realized he was having a one sided conversation with a cat that was ignoring him. He opened the door, hurried out and shut it quickly, but Sergio didn't try to run out after him. Good, maybe the cat was learning the rules. Who said you couldn't train cats?

CMCMCM

"I know sweet cheeks." Garcia said as she filed down a jagged edge on her nail. "I'll watch him while you're gone. I can't wait. I kind of miss the little guy."

"He likes to hide." Reid informed her.

"I remember… I'm sure we'll get along fine. Now get back to work."

She hung up the phone, shaking her head at it. Reid was such a worrywart. It's not like he'd asked her to take care of a kid. She could handle a cat with no problem.

Sergio was right at the door when she opened the lock with the key Reid had leant her. He meowed loudly as she turned off the alarm and wound between her legs.

"Hello there Sergio."

The cat meowed again as if in greeting.

"Have you been a good cat today? Reid told me about the toilet paper. Just between you and me, I think that's kind of funny. I wish I could've seen his face. Don't tell him I said that though."

Garcia had her own supply of cat food and a litter box at home and some toys, so all she had to do was get Sergio in the carrier.

"Come on Sergio. It's time to go visiting at my place."

Sergio let her pick him up, but he hissed and twisted in her arms when she tried to get him in the carrier.

"Come on kitty. I'm positive you'll love my place." She cooed. "We're going to have lots of fun together."

Sergio hissed at her and spread his legs against the carrier preventing her from putting him inside. "Bad kitty." Garcia scolded.

Sergio yowled angrily and scratched at her hand. Garcia dropped him and he ran for the living room. "I don't have time for this Sergio."

The cat squeezed under Reid's couch and wouldn't come out. "Come on kitty. I'm tired and hungry. I don't want to sleep on Reid's couch."

The cat was silent. "If you come out, I'll give you some new toys and a treat."

Nothing.

"Emily… I love you but your cat is a pain in my ass." She hissed between clenched teeth.

Sergio crawled out from under the couch and turned his eyes on Garcia. "You don't scare me." Garcia said.

The cat meowed and batted the air with one paw.

"You do realize this means war."


	7. Babysitting

_**Disclaimer: see my profile**_

_**A/n hey all... Here's the next chapter for you. Thank you all so much for your wonderful feedback and support. Many thanks as well to my awesome beta REIDFANATIC for all her idea's and help.**_

_**Babysitting**_

Sergio growled low in his throat at Garcia. "You don't scare me." She informed him. "I promise you'll like my place. It's colorful and very cool."

The cat hissed at her and switched his tail as if to say that he couldn't care less about colorful and cool apartments of human beings.

Garcia decided to take different tact. She went to the kitchen and opened the cabinet where she'd seen Reid store the cat treats. She put Sergio's catnip mouse and a couple of treats inside the carrier and sat down to wait.

Sergio did not go for the bait. Garcia blew out her breath, cracked her knuckles and glared at the cat. "I'm really not in the mood for this right now."

Sergio slithered under the couch again. She peered under it and the cat hissed at her. She decided that new measures were needed. Reid had told her where he kept a small container with more catnip toys given him by Garcia and some he'd purchased. She lined them all up to the carrier like breadcrumbs and waited. This new plan failed spectacularly, but she went on undaunted.

Half an hour later, after pretending as if she didn't care, chasing the cat into the bathroom, then in Reid's bedroom closet, and getting scratched, she finally shut the door on Sergio's carrier. Her legs shook with exhaustion, her heart beat like a drum in her breast and her forehead was streaming with sweat, but she'd won the day. The cat hissed and yowled at the trickery while Garcia smirked at him in triumphant.

"Now… It's time to go to my place."

Sergio hissed from his carrier.

"I promise you can run around as much as you want when we get to my apartment.

She picked up the cat carrier and the bag with the rest of Sergio's things, fortunately the drive to her place lasted a little less then twenty minutes. Sergio had gone very quiet on the way to her apartment. He didn't make a sound when she deposited his carrier on the floor next to counter.

Sergio slunk out of the carrier and ran to the door. He scratched at it and meowed.

"Hey…" Garcia hurried over and picked him up. "I know you miss Emily, but you've got two new friends now. You'll feel better in no time.

Sergio jumped out of her arms and ran back to the door. He sat down on his hunches with his back straight and stiff, and stared at the door.

"Alright… I get it. When you want a friend, I'll be here."

She took out her phone and tapped a speed dial number. "Hey Reid."

"_Garcia?"_

"Who did you expect sweet cheeks, Sergio?"

"_Of course not, cats can't talk."_ He informed her.

"I know that. I'm just calling to let you know I finally made it back to my place with Sergio."

"_Finally?"_

"Yeah, he didn't want to come with me. He's confused Reid. The poor little guy misses Emily."

He didn't speak for a minute. _"I miss her too." _He said.

"Me too."

He went very quiet again, which was unusual for him.

"Are you alright Reid?"

"_It's just this case. I don't like working without Emily." _

"We have to give it time. You can't just expect to go back and feel like the world is right."

"_Yeah… I guess you're right" _

"Why don't you call me in the morning before we get back to it? It's getting very late and I'm tired after wrangling your cat."

"_Garcia." _He squeaked.

"Don't "Garcia" me," She scolded. "Now, say 'goodnight Garcia," she ordered.

"_Goodnight Garcia." _He repeated like a kid in school learning his multiplication tables.

"Goodnight sweet cheeks," She made kissing noises into the phone and hung up.

Sergio still sat next to the door. He was staring at her instead of the door. "Why don't you come over here and have some water. She offered going to kitchen and filling the dish, she'd bought for him.

He just observed her with bright green eyes that wouldn't give up their secrets.

"You're going to be a tough nut to crack." Garcia told him. "That's okay. I have loads of patience."

She left him sitting there because if she picked him up, he'd just jump out of her arms and go right back to the door. It was best to let him get over waiting for Emily on his own.

"I'm right in there," She pointed at the beaded curtain that separated her bedroom from the main living area of the apartment. "If you want some company."

CMCMCM

Her alarm went off an hour earlier then she needed because she liked to be in the office working on the case before the team began the day. She'd learned to be flexible in her sleeping habits because helping them meant getting them home faster and in one piece.

She yawned and stepped out of bed. Her eyes fastened on a framed photograph on top of her dresser. It sat on a purple silk runner embroidered with white and yellow lilies, and roses with greenery intertwining with the flowers. The picture showed her team altogether the way they'd been before JJ and Emily were taken from them.

She picked up the photograph and ran a finger across the glass to Emily. Tears gathered in her eyes as she took in the smiling face of her friend. The picture had been taken at a time when they were oblivious to the rising tide of trouble and sorrow that was threatening to overwhelm them.

She sniffed hard and took the picture over to her bed. She should be getting ready for work, but suddenly she didn't feel like putting on something colorful to ward off the blood and horror of her job. She felt like putting on something black.

A meow and the feel of something furry winding between her feet lifted her eyes from the framed photograph. She bent down and picked up Sergio. "Hey Serge…"

The cat batted a paw gently at her chin.

"Did you have a good night?"

He mewled softly and inserted his claws into the tee shirt she wore to bed. Her fingers kneaded his neck. After a while, he began to purr loudly.

"I think you're feeling better."

The cat regarded her for a minute then stretched out his neck for more scratching. "I knew I'd find your Achilles heel."

Sergio purred so loud it was a good thing she didn't have any valuable crystal close by, as it would've been in danger of exploding.

"I can't sit here scratching your neck all day. I have to go to work. I have to watch over my team." Tears collected in the corners of her eyes, no matter that she tried desperately to hold them back. "I have to protect them."

She sat on the edge of the bed. The springs creaked a bit under her shift in weight. Sergio shifted too, but only to allow her hand better access to his neck.

"See… I failed. I didn't protect Emily. I should've done more. Maybe if I'd tried harder I could've found something in the freaking information superhighway to get Doyle before he hurt her."

Sergio stopped begging for scratches and stared at her as if he understood what she said. She couldn't see anything in the depths of his eyes, which absolved or blamed her for the loss of Emily. It was silly and Morgan would laugh, but somehow she'd feel better if the cat had an opinion one way or the other.

"You're just a cat." Garcia said, putting Sergio down on the bed. "I really need to get ready for work."

The cat hissed again, this time in apparent irritation at losing the sensation of her fingers scratching his neck. He jumped down off the bed and ran into the living room.

"I'll bet you didn't act like this with Emily." Garcia hollered after the cat.

CMCMCM

When Garcia opened the door to her apartment after three days of worry over her team, it was for Reid to pick up Sergio.

"Thanks for watching him." Reid was saying.

"Your welcome sweet cheeks. I like him. He's a cute little kitty."

Reid raised his eyebrows at her tone. "He doesn't act very cute with me."

She smacked him on the shoulder and pointed to the couch. "Go sit down and relax for a minute. I'm going to make us a cup of tea."

"I really should get back -"

Garcia narrowed her eyes at him through the pair of red framed glasses she wore with her bright yellow blouse and white and pink skirt. Her headed shook, making a large pair of earrings shaped as strawberries shake on her earlobes. "No! You're going to sit down and relax for minute. The last three days have been as close to hell as I want to get even worse then…"

She trailed off and turned around to go to her kitchen. "As bad as Emily's death." Reid completed bluntly.

She faced him again with her eyes wet and shiny. "Nothing could be as bad as that." She disagreed in a way that dared him to argue with her.

"No…" He said silently. "I guess nothing could be as bad as that."

"What kind of tea do you want?" She asked, neatly changing the subject to a safer topic.

"Do you have any mint tea?" He asked. "Since I know you won't make me coffee."

"You don't need it. You've had enough, and yes I have mint tea."

He surveyed her apartment, wondering where Sergio was hiding this time. The last time he'd spent anytime here, was after her shooting. He remembered thinking that all the color had seemed like chaos, but now he saw that the purple walls and all the colorful paintings and knick-knacks were soothing. He decided he liked it.

Sergio picked that minute to run into the room. He jumped up on the couch and sat down on his hunches staring at Reid.

"Hey Sergio."

The cat just sat there looking at him with his mysterious green eyes. Then, he lifted up on all fours and took a step toward Reid. Reid froze in his seat because maybe the cat had changed in three days. Sergio came closer and sniffed at the young genius.

It was weird… Reid could think of a thousand ways to talk a un-sub out of shooting a pregnant woman, a school full of children and Santa Claus, but he didn't know how to respond to a very skittish cat.


	8. Mint Tea and Conversation

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_Mint Tea and Conversation_**

The cat came closer, stretching out his neck to sniff at Reid. The young genius was speechless for the first time in a very long time. He just didn't know what to say or do with a curious black cat that seemed to be stalking him like a bird of prey.

"See… I told you it was just a matter of time." Garcia said.

Reid reached out one of his long fingered hands very slowly and touched Sergio on the top of his head. The cat pulled back and Reid flinched. Sergio inched closer and sniffed again at Reid. He meowed, then jumped off the couch and ran to Garcia's bedroom.

"Don't speak too loudly Garcia." Reid said as she handed him a cup of steaming and wonderful smelling mint tea.

She sat down on the opposite end of the couch with one leg tucked under, stirring sugar into her mug of mint tea. "I don't know what you're complaining about. He got close enough for you to touch him this time. It seems to me you're making progress."

"At this rate, I'll be forty by the time he trusts me enough to let me hold him."

She grinned at him around her tea. "Since when do you exaggerate the odds?"

"When dealing with a life form that behaves as irrationally as that cat."

Garcia spit out a sip of her tea, splattering the couch, the floor and Reid's arm. "Hey…" He protested.

She hurried back to the kitchen for a rag. "You can't expect a pet to behave like a human being." She argued as she dampened the cloth under the faucet.

"I understand that," he responded irritably. "I just don't get why dogs and cats don't like me."

She returned to the couch and dabbed at his sleeve. "There, your shirt will survive."

The sleeve of the light blue shirt now had damp spots all along the outside of his arm. He looked down at it dubiously.

"Don't worry. It'll wash out. Now," she dabbed at the couch and wiped up tea from the coffee table. "As for why cats and dogs don't like you, I think it's because they can sense when someone's nervous."

"I'm not nervous." He squeaked.

She raised both her eyebrows. "Really?"

He decided to look at his mug of tea instead of her eyes. It was easier to lie to her that way. "I'm not nervous. I'm cautious."

She laughed. "I say you're nervous. You don't easily trust people you don't know."

He traced a finger over the rim of the bright orange mug. "What's that got to do with nerves and animals?"

"If you don't trust people very easily, then why trust animals."

He frowned at her. "That doesn't make any sense. I trust people. I trust you and my mom, and the cops we work with all the time."

She reached over and stroked his arm. "You trust the team because we're family. You trust your mom because she's your mom. You only trust the LEOs we work with, because we all chase the bad guys. In all that, I know there's something you've been hiding from all of us except for Emily. You told her all about it."

Unfortunately, the mention of his headaches brought another one on with a vengeance. He winced and looked down at his mug of tea again.

"You don't have to tell me what's bothering you Junior G-man, but if you need me I'm always here."

He opened his mouth to tell her the truth, but a clicking noise stopped him. He looked over to see that Sergio was batting around the strings of beads that separated Garcia's room from the living area. "Hey Sergio…" He began to scold the cat.

"Don't worry about him." Garcia said as her eyes lit up at the antics of the cat. "I like seeing him enjoying himself."

Reid found that watching the cat bat around the beads not only made him smile, but the pain in his head receded back a little.

"Sometimes I wish I had the life of a cat." He said softly.

Garcia studied him as she would an interesting problem with her computers. "Why?"

"Because cats don't have higher emotions or human intelligence. They don't have a moral code or egos. They just go about their lives without stress."

"I don't think you give them enough credit. Look at Sergio," She indicated the cat who continued to bat like crazy at the beads. "He's freaked out because Emily's gone. He misses her and he's confused. I know you see that."

He nodded. "There was a study done, that cats can pick out the patients at a hospital that are going to die. They must be able to smell something that tells them. I remember one of our neighbors had a cat when I was little. Mrs. Halder got sick with cancer. They had a tabby cat that mostly played with her daughter, but ignored her mother. When the mother was sick that cat never left her side. She got better and the cat went back to paying most of its attention to Lisa Halder, the little girl."

Sometimes the things that Reid could recall from his childhood amazed her. "So the cat knew something was wrong."

"Yes… It was as if it could smell something was off. I really don't know what it was."

She raised her eyebrows again. "Are you admitting that you don't know something?"

He gave her an exasperated look as Sergio left off playing with the beads and curled up at Garcia's feet. "I don't know everything." He squeaked. "Why does everyone say that?"

"Probably because you seem to have an opinion on everything from the mating habits of fruit bats to arcane printer's ink."

"I read a lot."

She rolled her eyes at him. "I know sweet cheeks. You love to read."

He went rosy pink in the cheeks.

"I'm sorry if I embarrassed you. I love that you know all that stuff. How many times have you solved a case with all the stuff in your head?"

"It's a team effort Garcia."

She stroked his arm again. "I know that Reid. I'm just reminding you of your fabulousness."

"Fabulousness," now it was time for his eyes brows to go into his forehead.

"It's a valid word."

He smiled with genuine pleasure for the first time in days. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised that you'd use that word in casual conversation."

"No you shouldn't be surprised. I am your goddess."

Her tone of superiority teased another smile from him. "Yes you are." He agreed.

He turned his gaze to Sergio, who sat purring at her feet. The cat was watching him, but he didn't get up on the couch again. He didn't seem to be upset or confused at that moment and something about his contentment soothed the ragged ache in Reid's heart.

"What are you thinking in that big brain of yours?" She asked.

"I was thinking that a few days ago, the last thing I wanted was a cat and now…"

"And now," She prodded.

"And now I don't mind having him around even if he doesn't like me."

"What else are you thinking?"

She got up to take their mugs to the kitchen sink. Sergio followed her, watched her rinse out the mugs, and dry them with a red and pink stripped towel.

"I'm not thinking anything." Reid evaded.

"I can hear it in your voice." She said while putting the mugs in the dishwasher. "You forget that I mostly talk to you guys on the phone. I know every nuance and stress in your voice."

"If you're so smart," Reid looked back over his shoulder at her. "What is my tone telling you now?"

"No one likes a smartass Dr Reid, especially a genius smartass."

He started to speak, then shut his mouth.

"A very wise decision. Now… I think it's time for you to take your cat home. It's getting very late and I'm tired."

"I'm tired too." He admitted.

"I don't know how you'll get him in the carrier. He hates it." She informed him.

"I have an idea about that."

Garcia couldn't believe she hadn't thought of his solution to the 'cat hates his carrier' problem. Reid simply stood the carrier on one end while instructing her to get a towel, wrap it around the cat so his legs didn't stick out and pick him up. Sergio didn't like this turn of events. He yowled and hissed at both of them until they lowered him into the carrier and shut it, and then he went back into sulky silence.

"Nice job Reid."

"It's logical."

She punched him in the shoulder.

"Ow…"

"I told you no one likes a smart ass."

He grinned at her glowering face. "I think you said that more than once. You should probably get something to eat. Repeating yourself is a symptom of low blood sugar."

"Alright… Get out of here before I really hurt you."

He picked up the cat carrier and headed to the door. "Hey Garcia."

"What?"

"Thanks for looking after Sergio for me."

She smirked at him. "You're welcome. Now go home."

He saluted her with his free hand and left the apartment.

She looked around at the empty place and began to think it might be worth the extra fee to get a cat of her own to love.

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Reid reached his place at just about midnight. He was surprised to see the revolving lights of a police car and an ambulance outside the door to the building.

"What do you think's going on Sergio?"

The cat only hissed in answer, which made Reid smile. "We're almost there." Reid informed the irritated cat.

He took the elevator up to his floor wondering if someone was sick, or if there'd been a shooting. This building was in a nice neighborhood, but you never could tell. He well knew that even the nicest of neighborhoods could have violence lurking in them.

The elevator doors opened on his floor, but not to a peaceful late night quiet. Rather, two cops stood there talking to one of his neighbors.

One of them stopped him. "Who are you?"

Reid put the cat carrier on the ground. "I'm going to reach into my bag for identification."

The cop nodded and watched him carefully as he extracted his id wallet and handed it to the officer.

"FBI?"

"Yes," Reid took back the wallet. "I'm with the BAU. My name is Dr. Spencer Reid. SSA Reid."

"Well Dr. Reid, there's been an incident and we like to ask you a few questions."


	9. Covert Operation

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hey all... Here's the next chapter. Once more I want to thank all of you for your kind support. Please enjoy. _**

**_Convert Operation_**

"What kind of incident?" Reid asked as his cat hissed from his carrier.

"There's been a murder-suicide and attempted murder in 3B." The officer explained.

Reid's training kept him from responding with the sudden horror that sent his heart racing. He knew the officers, in their blue uniforms with guns and badges, were sizing him up. He said with as much care as he could, "What happened?"

The wail of a siren rose, then fell, as what Reid assumed to be the ambulance, raced away. It must have been the one he'd seen outside the apartment complex.

"A Marilyn Strong lived in the apartment with her daughter Violet. It looks like her boyfriend killed Marilyn and thought he killed Violet before shooting himself in the head. The medics took Violet out on the other elevator as you came up on this one."

Reid observed the officer, who had blond hair so closely cropped to his head that pink patches of scalp were clearly visible. His face was as round and pink cheeked as a Cupie doll. If he hadn't glowered nearly as well as Hotch, Reid could have taken him for someone as dangerous as a bunny rabbit. Reid well knew that appearances were deceptive.

"Which one is your apartment?" The second officer asked.

He was the exact opposite of his partner. He stood at least three inches taller then Reid and had a shock of dark brown hair standing up like the bristles on a hairbrush. His face was all angles and hard lines with dark grey eyes. His eyes were kinder, but Reid decided that he was the force with which, to be reckoned.

"I live in 3E."

"Had you met the family?" The second officer asked.

"I've met Violet." Reid said.

The first officer stared at him with cold eyes. "How do you know her?"

"I'm curious as to why you're interrogating me." Reid asked lightly.

"Why do you think we're interrogating you?"

Reid sighed. "You know my name, but I don't know your name officer."

"My name is Richardson, this is my partner O'Malley." He indicated the taller, dark haired man.

"I met Violet less than a week ago. I don't think her mother and she lived her very long before I ran into her in the hallway one afternoon."

"Did she mention her mother or her mother's boyfriend?" Richardson asked.

"She told me about her mother, but I didn't know about the boyfriend."

The two officers looked at each other.

"What aren't you saying?" Reid inquired as the cat yowled.

"It appears that the boyfriend entered the apartment while the mother was out and tried to assault the girl."

"By assault, I assume you mean sexually." Reid added the pit of his stomach growing cold.

_He should've called CPS when he knew that Violet's mother locked her out of the house on a regular basis. He shouldn't have let the cat and his grief over Emily distract him. _

"Yes… Apparently, there was quiet a struggle, the girl's mother came home sooner then the boyfriend planned, so he shot them. Then he shot himself. Another neighbor called the police. We responded."

"Can you tell how Violet is?" Reid asked again.

"She was shot in the chest. She was still alive when the medic took her out. It looks very touch and go." Richardson said.

"Do you know which hospital they sent her to?" He asked. His hands shook so he shoved then in his pockets.

"I believe they're on there way to Georgetown University." O'Malley stated.

"If we're done here, I'd like to go over there."

The officers looked at each other again. "I'm surprised you'd care. You've only met her once."

Reid sighed in irritation. "If you must know, she has a way with my cat. I haven't had him long and we don't get along."

As if to ram that point home for the cops, Sergio yowled and hissed in his carrier.

"He doesn't sound too happy," Richardson said with something resembling a smile.

"No… He really doesn't like the carrier. I need to get him out actually. Are we done here?"

"Yes for now… Is there a number I can reach you at?" O'Malley asked.

Reid dug one of his business cards out of his bag and wrote another number and name on the back. "The number on the back is my boss SSA Aaron Hotchner."

"Thank you."

Reid nodded curtly. "If you don't mind…"

They stepped aside and let him round the corner to his apartment where he went inside, set the alarm, let Sergio out of the carrier and dropped down on his couch.

The cat didn't run from his as normal. Instead, he jumped up on the couch and crawled into Reid's lap. The profiler went still as death and didn't try to pet the cat. Sergio turned his dark eyes up to Reid.

"I should go see Violet."

Sergio only stared up at him. Reid lifted a hand and began to stroke the cat. For the first time Sergio didn't pull away or hiss at him.

"They probably wouldn't let me in." He said to Sergio. "I'm sure she's in surgery and I'm not next of kin so they won't tell me how she's doing."

Sergio softly mewed as if he understood everything Reid said. "It's my fault. I should've called CPS or the police. Instead, I just pretended all was well because I couldn't stop thinking about Emily."

He sniffed and lifted Sergio to hold the cat in his arms against his chest and shoulder like a little baby. "I wish she were here. She'd scold me for not paying attention to Violet's obvious cries for help. She would say "You're the profiler Reid, use your head."

Sergio stretched his neck under Reid's long fingers and purred.

"I screwed up Sergio."

Sergio reached up and tapped Reid's cheek once with his paw. Reid looked at the cat's bright green yellow eyes that stared at him with something in their depths that sent a chill along his back. The cat had poked him just as Emily had when he'd gone on and on about an Aryan code. "He's so life like." She'd said making everyone laugh.

He could always count on Emily to break the tension with a well-placed remark or jibe. It took him a while, but he soon came to learn that her teasing was good-natured and not meant to make anyone feel bad. At least she wasn't as relentless as Morgan could be in his older brother role.

"What do you think Emily would do?" He asked the cat.

Sergio just stared at him the same way that Emily used to when he went off on some tangent that wasn't necessarily appropriate to a case.

"I get it… So are you willing to help me?" Reid asked his new friend.

Sergio leaped down out of his arms and ran out of the room with his tail in the air. "I'll take that as a yes." Reid yelled after the cat.

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Garcia drove them to University Hospital a week later. Reid figured that if Violet had been in the ICU after surgery, she might be out now. If not, they'd come back another day. If she were, they'd use Sergio as a way to get in to see her.

"I don't understand why you don't just use your credentials." Garcia complained as they turned into the parking lot.

"I don't flash my badge to get what I want. That's not what our credentials are for." He informed her.

She parked Esther and turned her gaze on her friend. "You're no fun at all. Think of all the girls you could get if you just showed your badge. At least you wouldn't have to fake it like that idiot Emily, JJ and I met in a bar."

He laughed, "I remember, you guys thought it was hilarious."

"You were the one that said we should've called the cops on him for impersonating a federal officer."

He grimaced. "I still think you should've called them. We lose our credibility if people go around lying about being agents."

"You need to loosen up." She informed him. "Get the cat and let's go."

He removed the carrier from the car. Sergio had been strangely quiet on the trip as though he knew something important was happening.

Garcia approached the nurse at the check in station with a confidence Reid envied so badly it physically hurt. There were only two people in the waiting room as they entered. The waiting couple was very old, with white hair, wrinkled skin and matching walkers. He held the woman's hand and was softly talking to her while she wept.

"Excuse me…" Garcia was saying. "We were wondering if we might be able to visit the patients in your children's ward. We brought a therapy cat to see them."

The nurse behind the desk wore her long red hair in a French braid and blue scrubs. She looked up from her paperwork and gave Garcia a smile.

"I'm sure the children would like that very much. Why don't I have Lisa show you the way upstairs?"

A curvy Asian woman with short black hair and cranberry scrubs appeared a minute later. "I'm Lisa."

"My name's Penelope and this is Spencer."

"We're always happy when the kids get furry visitors. We had a therapy dog in just last week and the kids loved it. Which agency are you with?" She asked while leading them through a pair of double doors.

"We're with DC Child Rescue."

Lisa beamed at them. "We appreciate it. I'll just show you to the day room. Most of the kids are there after lunch."

"Thanks…" Garcia said. "We love visiting the kids."

When they got off the elevator, Reid hung back a little and hissed at Garcia. "Are you sure lying is a good idea?"

"Shut up and follow the nice nurse." Garcia hissed back.


	10. A Black Cat and Magic Tricks

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hey all... Here's the next chapter. FF won't let me respond to some of your reviews so I want to tell all of you that I really appreciate all of your feedback and support. You all rock!_**

**_A Black Cat and Magic Tricks_**

Reid decided he should have stock in hospitals after all the time spent healing from one work related injury or the other. He'd spent more time in uncomfortable hospital beds and in hospital Johnnies than he cared to admit, especially lately with his headaches, that no one seemed to be able to diagnose.

So it was a surprise to him to see how hard the hospital staff worked to make the Children's Ward a cheerful place. It wasn't that he didn't think they cared, it was just - well it was weird to see the difference between where the children got care and adults healed from their injuries and diseases. As he paused in the doorway to the sunroom, he remembered the first MRI he'd had for his headaches. The starkness of the room, all the white on the walls and the floors and inside the machine all came back with stark clarity. He thought of how alone he felt lying there while the machine clanked around him. How he wanted someone there to be with him, or hold his hand. How he wanted his mother to tell him everything would be okay.

"Hey sweet cheeks," Garcia touched his elbow. "What are you thinking about?"

"Um… Well, I was thinking it's so bright and colorful."

"I noticed. Let's go see if Violet is here."

He nodded and stepped into a world of nearly floor to ceiling walls of windows on three sides of the room that let bright yellow sunshine play with the children. He scanned the room, seeing about seven children including Violet who sat in a wheelchair next to a young girl with strawberry blond hair and a cast on her leg.

He almost tripped over a toy truck in the middle of the room. The little boy pushing it over the geometric and colorfully patterned carpet said. "Hey mister… You're blocking the road."

"Oh… Um sorry."

"Kids…"

He'd nearly forgotten the accompanying nurse, who'd led them to this room.

"This is Ms Penelope and Mr. Spencer. They brought a visitor for you."

All the children including teenaged Violet looked up from their activities. Reid saw the recognition in her eyes, so he kept his gaze on the rest of the children.

"They've brought a cat into see you all. This cat loves children." The nurse said as Reid set the carrier on an empty armchair and let Sergio out into the room.

Sergio looked around for a minute, jumped down and headed to a small boy sitting in a wheelchair. His baldhead and the IV lines in his arms made Reid think that he suffered from some form of cancer.

The children, with the exception of Violet all gathered around Sergio. Reid watched in utter surprise that the cat didn't run away from all of the attention. Had someone replaced Sergio with a clone when he wasn't looking?

"Looks like Sergio's the new hottest thing." Garcia said.

Reid was too stunned to reply. Statistics and facts about cats didn't help in this odd case. Perhaps he could write a paper about his experiences with Sergio that would help others understand their cats.

"Hey Reid…" Garcia elbowed him. "Stop plotting your next paper and go talk to Violet," she hissed out of the corner of her mouth.

He just stared back at her. "How did you know?"

"You're not that hard to figure out despite your big old puppy eyes and your bashful smile."

"Garcia!"

"So who's the little boy Sergio likes." Garcia asked the nurse instead of dealing with Reid.

"That's Jimmy. He has leukemia. He's in the middle of chemotherapy. We're trying to find a marrow donor for him, but so far no luck."

The three of them stood watching the children vie for the cat's attention with solemn expressions. Sergio sat at Jimmy's feet swishing his tail as the very sick little boy smiled down at him. The cat stood up on his hind legs, laid his front paws on the boys legs, and sniffed at the boy in a way familiar to Reid.

"I think I'm going to go get in on the action and talk to the kids." Garcia said.

She waded in and Reid heard her say. "Hey guys! My name is Penelope. How's everyone doing?"

"She's very colorful." The nurse said.

"Yeah, she's the best." He said proudly as Garcia dropped to her knees and engaged two little girls in conversation as the other played with Sergio.

"I really need to get back to work." The nurse said.

"Oh well… Who is that girl?" Reid pointed at Violet.

"That's Violet. She's recovering from a gunshot wound." The nurse frowned as she took in the teenager sitting in the wheelchair and watching the other children interact with Garcia and Sergio.

Reid could see the toll the last week had taken on the teen. Her smartass grin was gone. Her black hair lay flat against her head and her rosy face was as pale as death. Her light blue eyes haunted him because he recognized the look in them from his mirror.

"I'm going to say hello."

He left the nurse and went to her wheelchair. "Hi Violet. How are you?"

She met his gaze reluctantly and didn't speak. Up close, the white of her skin was even more pronounced.

"I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry." He went on. "It's my fault you're here."

Her eyes came alive a little. "It's not your fault." She croaked.

"It is… I was distracted by Sergio. I should've called someone and then maybe your mother's boyfriend wouldn't have hurt you and your mother would be alive."

A tear cascaded down her face. "I don't want to talk about it." She said firmly. "Please just go away."

"Violet, I'm sorry I -"

"I said go away."

He didn't get up and go away but he didn't try to talk to her again, because he didn't know what to say. He never knew what to say to make things right. If he'd only tried harder with Emily…

A black streak suddenly raced up to Violet and jumped into her lap. The cat meowed at her and curled up in her lap. Reid looked over at the rest of the kids and saw that they were sitting in a half circle around Penelope's chair. He could see that she was telling them a story that had their entire attention. He shook his head wondering how she did it.

"Hey Sergio," he heard Violet say.

Tears rolled down her face as one of her trembling hands began stroking Sergio's back. The cat stayed still in her lap and silent as midnight. Reid's hands twisted in his lap. Had he known the cat would make the girl cry, he wouldn't have brought him to see her. Now what to do. He didn't know what to say to crying women.

Sergio twisted in Violet's lap as if he sensed Reid looking at them. He didn't hiss at Reid, but he did meow then swished his tail as Violet scratched his ears. A memory, long forgotten in the details and stress of life rose up from his mind like a newborn flower from the dark earth.

_"Women don't like it when men try to fix them." Emily had once told him._

He'd thought it strange at the time because Emily said that she'd had to tell Morgan the same thing when he screwed up with Garcia. Emily said that women liked it when men listened and sympathized with their problems. Okay… He could do that if Violet wanted to talk to him. What else could he say to her? He ran through a bunch of facts and decided that telling her something like crying was good for the body because it helped to relive stress probably wasn't what she wanted to hear. He thought of gunshot related trivia and the odds of getting an infection in the hospital, but that wasn't the right thing either.

Sergio meowed again and stared at him. He had the uncanny feeling that the feline knew what he was thinking and approved of it. That thought was more disconcerting than he knew how to handle so he decided he was reading too much into the expression of the cat.

"Hey Reid."

He looked up to see Garcia leaving her seat in front of the kids. "What?"

All of their eyes were turned to him, which was never a good thing. He was better at dealing with profiles or LEOs as the years had progressed, than talking to kids.

"I told the kids you do magic tricks."

He saw out of the corner of his eye that Violet was watching him. The other children were now gathered around him.

"Why did you tell them that?" He squeaked.

"I bet you can't do any real magic." One little boy with curly dark hair and coffee colored skin accused.

"Dr. Reid has a doctorate in Magicology." Garcia assured the small boy.

"That's not a real degree," a slightly older boy with red hair and freckles said.

"Sure it is." Garcia insisted. "You'll see."

She rolled her hand in encouragement to Reid who felt like his heart might burst from his chest it was thumping so hard. He didn't realize that his headache was gone because this was utterly terrifying. Still, they were all staring at him with varying levels of interest and disbelief. He glanced over at Violet and saw that she was looking at him as though the next thing he did was the most important thing in the world.

"Ms Garcia." He said to his friend. "Who should we ask to be my lovely assistant?"

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you made me do magic tricks for the kids." Reid complained as they drove into his apartment parking lot.<p>

"Violet liked being your assistant. You got her to smile. She wasn't looking too hot."

"I think that had more to do with Sergio than me." He argued.

The cat hissed from his carrier. No matter where they went, Reid knew that cat would always hate his carrier.

"When are you going to see your own special charm?" Penelope asked when she'd parked Esther.

"I don't have any special charm."

Garcia only shook her head so that her dangling red earrings with bells clinked softly. "Whatever… I think you did great. You had the kids eating out of your hand."

"I feel bad leaving Violet there. She doesn't have anyone anymore."

Garcia reached over and patted his cheek. "Don't you worry about that? I'm all over it."

He eyed her suspiciously. "What are you up too?"

"If I told you, I'd have to kill you."

He rolled his eyes. He was nearly a hundred percent sure that she was kidding. "When do I get to know?" He asked.

"Just leave it to me."


	11. Dancing King

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hey all... Finally FF let me upload this chapter. And, thanks to all of you for your kind reviews, especially to the people I can't respond to through the site. Please enjoy. _**

**_Dancing King _**

Reid shut the door and stooped to let Sergio out of the carrier. Sergio hissed at him and stalked off to his hiding place. Reid stared after him, wondering if he'd ever find out just where that cat went to hide from him.

He went to his keyboard and sat down. It had been days since he'd felt like playing anything. Something made him place his fingers on the keys. He switched on the power supply for the keyboard while checking through his mental list of sheet music.

He had purchased stacks of music in the last few weeks. His discovery that he loved playing the piano nearly as much as he loved chess was a very pleasant surprise. It appealed to the side of him that adored the structure of a mathematical problem. The music was soothing too. He found that playing something bright and classical sometimes helped the constant ache in his head.

He closed his eyes and thought back to the day he'd admitted to Emily that he'd been having terrible headaches. She'd been sympathetic despite her own troubles. She'd listened to him. Why hadn't she let him listen and help her? If she'd just told him then maybe…

He shook his head and placed his hands on the keyboard. Wishing wouldn't change anything or bring her back. The anger he'd tried not to show to anyone welled up inside him. It wasn't right that she just took all of that on her shoulders. She hadn't trusted them to help her. It didn't matter that she only wanted to keep them safe. Why did she get to risk everything and not let them help?

He jumped when Sergio meowed and wound through his legs. Reid looked down to see the cat staring up at him. He leaned down and picked up the cat. For the first time Sergio didn't hiss or try to jump out of his arms.

"Are we friends now?"

The cat dug his claws into Reid's shirt and meowed.

"Can I tell you something?" Reid asked, feeling a bit silly asking permission from a feline.

The cat just stared up at him.

"I'm mad at Emily."

Sergio lifted a paw and batted at Reid's face.

"She should've told us she was in trouble."

Sergio licked at Reid's chin.

"I know Sergio… I have to let it go."

He put the cat down on the floor, placed his hands for the third time on the keyboard, and began to play. As always, the first tune he played was the same tune he had learned from Sammy Sparks. It was easy to recall and it was bright and happy. It soothed the ragged edge of his anger. He was several measures into the song, when he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned to see Sergio and stopped dead.

The cat stopped its movement and looked at him as if to ask why he'd stopped playing. Reid knew that people rarely opened their mouths in shock, but there he was sitting there with is mouth hanging open as if he was trying to catch flies. Sergio meowed at him as if trying to shake Reid out of his shock.

"Where did you learn that?" Reid squeaked.

The cat stalked over to him and rose up on his hind legs. He meowed loudly, and then dropped back to all fours in front of the astonished Reid.

The genius stared down at the cat for a very long time until the cat meowed again. He started out of his thoughts; shaking his head and muttering about his headaches making him see things. He turned back to the keyboard and started the song from the beginning.

He played through about halfway before curiosity turned his head in the direction of his new black feline. The cat was doing the same strange thing as before. Reid kept his hands on the keyboard and his eyes on the cat as he jumped around and bopped his head. He stopped playing again just to see what the cat would do next.

Sergio turned his head and meowed at Reid. He seemed to be trying to express annoyance, which didn't make sense. Reid shook his head in denial. He was trying to impose way too much emotion on the cat. It was something that most humans did with their cats he knew, but swore he'd never fall prey to if he ever decided to get a pet of his own. It appeared that all his grand plans to be a sensible pet owner were flying straight out the window.

He narrowed his eyes at the cat, who'd begun winding around and between his legs and meowing. "Okay… I'll finish the song this time."

He began to play again and Sergio started to 'dance' again. Reid watched him, rather than the keyboard, wondering if this was something Emily had discovered about the cat or if she'd hadn't had time. As he finished the happy song he loved, his delight at discovering this 'talent' faded away in the wake of all the things Emily would never do. His hands slid off the keys with a discordant last chord as tears welled up in his eyes. He wiped at them impatiently with his hand. Morgan wouldn't sit around in his apartment crying over Emily. He'd get on with his life and kick ass in her memory. He doubted that Hotch and Rossi moped around either. They had to get on with their lives. He had to stop moping around.

Sergio meowed and jumped up into Reid's lap. He reared up and put his front paws on Reid's chest. "You must think I'm weird." Reid said. "Sitting here playing the piano and crying."

Sergio swished his tail and licked Reid's chin. "Did you show Emily you could dance?" Reid asked the feline.

Sergio just stared at him with bright eyes that spoke of an intelligence that surpassed what Reid expected.

_You're projecting again. _

"It's not fair that we didn't get more time with her Sergio."

Sergio jumped out of his arms and ran to kitchen. He meowed very loudly. A huge wave of laugher welled up in Reid's chest breaking the bubble of anger in his heart. In just a few days, the cat had trained him very well.

"Alright… Don't get nervous. I'm coming." He called in the general direction of the kitchen.

CMCMCM

The day beginning so interestingly with his little cloak and dagger with Garcia, ended on a quiet note. He'd spent most of the time in his living area practicing a new song on his keyboard. Sergio hadn't danced again as though his little show were over for the day. The initial surprise that Sergio could dance had brought a little bit of happiness and humor to Reid after seeing Violet hurt and missing Emily most of the day. He decided that he missed it. Still… He knew he wouldn't be able to get the cat to dance on command. Cats do their own thing. No one owns cats because they are their own people. He left the piano bench laughing at the use of the word people with relation to cats. He had to remember that Sergio wasn't a human.

His getting ready for bed ritual didn't take very long, he used the toilet, washed his hands, brushed his teeth and took some pain medication for the headache that never seemed to go away anymore.

He read somewhere that in order to get a good night's sleep one had to stick to the same routine every night. The study said to go to bed at the same time every night no matter the day of the week and get up at the same time. He looked at himself in the mirror, and smiled sarcastically. He could imagine telling Hotch he had to cut out early on an investigation because it was past his bedtime. Yep… That would go over really well with everyone on the team.

He sighed and headed back to his bedroom. He had to face the fact of his life that he had to take sleep where he could get it. His eyes did feel a little heavy that night instead of wide open like usual so maybe he'd sleep.

CMCMCM

Hours later, an unfamiliar and irritating noise assaulted his ears. He sat up in bed, darkness pushing in around him as he tried to figure out what was going on. The clock next to his bed showed that it was two thirty seven in the morning. Damn it! What the hell!

More of the discordant noise arose from the direction of his living room. He snapped on his night table lamp and cursed at the assault of light on his night-adapted eyes. He should've kept the lights off, he thought irritably.

When he reached the living room several minutes later he stopped dead in his tracks. He didn't know why Sergio's latest stunt should surprise him. His new pet was anything but sedate and normal, at least not in Reid's opinion.

"What are you doing?" He squeaked at the feline. "Are you nuts?"

Sergio was standing on top of the keyboard. It was evident that the cat found walking or running up and down the keyboard as funny. Sergio twitched his tail and turned to run over the keyboard again, eliciting the same discordant music from the keys. The cat leapt down off the keyboard to sit on the bench Reid had bought for playing.

"I was in the middle of the best night's sleep I've had since I got you."

The cat didn't meow, hiss or otherwise indicate that he heard or cared about Reid's sleeping habits.

"Bad kitty."

The words left his mouth before he could stop them because he knew they wouldn't make one bit of difference. It was just a knee jerk reaction.

Sergio just sat there staring at him with his tail twitching back and forth. For the first time the cat looked like a witch's familiar to him.

"How did you turn on the keyboard?"

He went to the instrument and pushed the switch to turn it off; trying to remember if he'd neglected to turn off the keyboard before going to bed. He'd been drowsy after all, so anything was possible.

_Or the cat jumped up and hit the switch purely by accident._

_Great… Was he going to have to unplug the keyboard every time he went to bed now?_

"Stay off the keyboard."

When he caught himself shaking his finger at the cat like Sergio was a naughty little boy, he rolled his eyes. This was getting out of hand.

"I'm going back to bed." He informed the cat after turning off the keyboard and pulling the plug. "No more playing around for you."

He left the room, went back to his bed and was just settling down when Sergio slithered through the crack between his bedroom door and the door jam.

"Go away…" Reid yawned. "I'm tired.

Sergio jumped up on the bed next to Reid and pushed his head into the profiler's right hand.

"What are you doing in here? I'm mad at you right now."

Sergio meowed in what Reid decided was a very pitiable way. "Don't try to kiss up to me."

The cat flicked his tail and pushed his head into Reid's hand again.

"Did Emily have to put up with this from you?"

Sergio crawled up and lay down next to Reid's chest as the young profiler lay on his right side. "Fine… I know you'll leave when you want to."

Reid found his hand stroking the head of the cat that began to purr so loud it was as if someone had started the engine of a tiny train in the room.

"Don't think I forgive you for waking me up."

Sergio didn't move away from Reid's long fingers on his neck.

"I'm still mad at you."

The cat purred louder still as Reid's fingers moved up to the top of his head.

"I'm turning out the light now and going to sleep."

Sergio turned his head and favored Reid with one of his long stares out of bright green eyes.

"I hope you remember that I'm the one that feeds you."

Sergio jumped down off the bed and left the bedroom with his tail in the air.

Reid turned over and shut off the light, plunging the room into darkness. He couldn't quite conceal the smile that lit up his face for the first time in days.


	12. Force of Nature

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hello all... Here's the next chapter. Thanks once again to all my wonderful readers. You guys are the best. _**

**_Force of Nature _**

Reid stretched his legs out on his couch and crossed them at the ankles. He had a new book to read from the library and an afternoon off to enjoy it.

A meow pulled his attention from the book to the floor beside the couch and in front of his old wooden coffee table. Sergio sat there looking up at him with his tail swishing back and forth.

"Hey Sergio…" He greeted the cat.

Sergio leaped up on Reid's outstretched legs and walked up his body to his chest.

"No treats for you," Reid scolded. "I already gave you one this morning. It's very important that you get the right amount of calories for your breed, size, and level of exercise."

Sergio batted a paw at Reid's right hand and softly hissed.

"You don't scare me. I know for a fact that cats are the only domestic animal that domesticated themselves." He told the cat smugly. "That means that _you_ came to us, _not_ the other way around."

Sergio just stared at him with his cat green eyes.

"Garcia always tells me that my puppy eyes won't get me anything. I say the same thing about your cat eyes."

Sergio closed said cat eyes under the influence of Reid's scratching fingers. "See… I know exactly how to get in your good graces."

Sergio began to purr as Reid stroked down his back to the base of his tail. "I read an article that said cats like to be stroked near the tail."

Sergio opened his eyes and resumed staring at Reid. "If you think that's going to freak me out, you've got another thought coming."

The cat stretched out his legs and his claws.

"I_ told_ you… Showing your claws doesn't scare me."

Sergio stayed still, didn't look at Reid and after awhile fell asleep. Reid resumed reading his book as a pleasant and rare hour of rest passed in blessed silence and without the pain of a headache. In fact, since taking possession of Sergio, his headaches had decreased in frequency.

His cell phone rang just as he began another book. Sergio jerked awake at the buzzing of the phone and leaped down off his chest.

"Yeah Hotch… Alright, I'm on my way."

"Well Sergio," he sighed as he reached for his shoes. "It's off to visit with Garcia for you. I have a case at work."

He tied his Converse shoes and stood up. His go bag was already repacked and waiting near the door with his messenger bag. He just had to grab Sergio's toys and they were off.

* * *

><p>Garcia unlocked the door to her apartment with one hand while balancing a couple of shopping bags on her arm. Reid followed her inside with two other bags in his arms. He followed her to the kitchen and gratefully relinquished his burden.<p>

"I don't understand why we had to get so much food." Reid complained.

Sergio ran up to them meowing in a distinctly put out way.

"Okay… Hold your horses." Garcia said as she put down her purse and her shopping bags. "You're impatient today."

She gave the cat some food, which the hungry feline fell on as if it was the last time he'd ever eat in his nine lives.

"That cat is _such_ a drama queen."

Garcia turned to take a loaf of bread from her shopping bag and stopped in her tracks. "What the hell did you do Serge?"

Her tone surprised Reid, as he'd never heard her talk to anyone, much less the cat that way. "What's wrong?"

"Look?"

She pointed at the counter top that he knew was supposed to hold a line of dancing hula girls. They were gone. He noticed that some of them had been knocked onto the tile floor of the kitchen. Garcia plucked one out of the sink.

"I'm sorry Garcia. Are they damaged?"

He crouched down to retrieve the knick-knacks, including one that seemed out of place with the rest of the colorful accessories in his best friend's apartment. It was a china figurine of woman in an old-fashioned floor length gown with petticoats peeking from beneath her skirts. She wore a bonnet and had blond ringlets hanging down from under the pink and white bonnet.

"Oh…" Garcia snatched the figurine out of Reid's hands. "Is she okay? Bad kitty!"

She took the figurine to the living area, sat down on the couch and began carefully to inspect it.

"Um... Garcia." Reid squeaked. "I'm sorry… Is it okay?"

Garcia looked up to see him looking like she might scream at him at any second. "I'm sorry baby cakes. My mother gave this to me six months before she died. It belonged to my grandmother. My grandfather gave it to her for a wedding gift. It belonged to his mother before that when she lived in England before she and my great grandfather emigrated here.

Reid joined her on the couch, forgetting about all the food they brought and the fact that Garcia still hadn't told him why. "May I see it?"

"Of course."

She watched him turn it over in his long fingers. "It's beautiful."

"Yeah… I loved it when I was a kid. It always sat up on the hearth over the fireplace. Once, when I was a teenager I was dusting and knocked it off the hearth."

She showed him a tiny chip in one of the pink china ribbons that adorned the dress. "Mom didn't get angry at me for being careless. She just sat me down and told me the story of how my great grandmother brought it safely to America on a journey by boat. I felt so bad after hearing the story, that I wouldn't go anywhere near it for two years. My mother finally gave it to me as a gift and well… Here I go freaking out about it getting knocked over again."

She got up and put the china figurine and the hula dancers back on the ledge of the counter near the sink.

"I really am sorry. I try to keep him from jumping up on counters, but he doesn't listen to me."

Garcia began unloading food again. "Don't worry about it sweet cheeks. I'm just tired and irritable."

"I know what you mean. The case was…" He trailed off and decided to help her unpack instead of just sitting there.

"Yes it was," Garcia agreed. "I hope I never have to see anything like that again."

"Unfortunately, there's a seven hundred and twenty nine percent chance we'll see that type of crime at least once more."

She hit him in the arm with a bag full of celery. "Thanks for the happy statistics Reid."

"Sorry…"

"Don't apologize for being you Dr Reid. I just wish that you were wrong once in awhile."

"So do I," he admitted as Sergio ran between his legs and into the living area.

The cat jumped up onto one of the arms of the couch then up on top of the back to lay there and stare at them as they worked.

"Well at least Sergio is happy." Garcia said.

"I found him sitting staring at the door again, the other morning." Reid said.

"It's going to take time for him to get used to his new home. You said he was warming up to you."

"He is… but there's times he acts like he's just humoring me until Emily comes back. I know that logically that can't be right, but it feels like it."

Garcia put away her shopping bags and turned to look him hard in the eyes. "I think you're right and logic has nothing to do with it. Cats know things."

"So you think that he knows something we don't know." Reid said with much disbelief she could see. "What do you think he knows, that Emily's still alive, living under another name and getting ready for a final show down with Doyle?"

"No… That's crazy." Garcia said. "Even if I wanted it to be true so bad it hurts - how would she pull that off?"

"I'm trying to be sarcastic." Reid said. "You all think I'm too literal."

"You _are _too literal, but thanks for making the effort."

"Are you going to tell me why you bought enough food for the army?" Reid asked after a long silence that wasn't very comfortable.

"I told you that you'd have to wait and see."

"Please tell me." He pleaded.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "You're trying to get something with those puppy eyes again and it won't work this time."

"Please!"

Sergio jumped down and crawled into Garcia's lap when they sat down. He meowed up at her. "Getting your cat to gang up on me won't help."

"He's not ganging up on you with me. That's silly."

She observed him carefully as the cat batted at her hand. "I don't know… I think anything is possible when it comes to his eyes and your eyes together."

Reid stared open mouthed at her until she began to laugh. "I'm kidding."

He pouted as Sergio climbed off Garcia's lap and into his lap instead.

"Are you going to tell me?" He persisted.

"I told you all in good time. Just keep this Saturday open."

"Why?"

She narrowed here eyes at him as he petted the cat near the base of his tail so that the cat began to purr.

"If I tell you why, it'll give away the surprise."

"Fine… I give up. I'm going now." He began to rise from his seat with Sergio in his arms."

"Don't go away mad sweet cheeks." She patted the couch. "I know you're hungry. Let me make you my famous three cheese lasagna."

"No!" He squeaked. "It's too much work."

"Sit down and relax." She ordered. "I promise you won't be sorry."

He sat down with the cat firmly in his arms because arguing with Garcia wouldn't do him any good. "She's a force of nature." He whispered to the cat.

"I heard that!"


	13. Violet's Surprise

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hi all... Here's the next chapter. I keep hoping one day I'll be able to reply to reviews in the normal way. For now... Thanks to you all._**

**_Violet's Surprise _**

When Reid found himself knocking on Garcia's door that Saturday morning, he didn't know what to expect. The most important thing he'd learned about his flamboyant friend was that anything was possible. He looked down at Sergio's carrier and said. "I'm not too sure about this."

The cat chose that moment to stay utterly silent. Reid rolled his eyes in exasperation. Sergio never missed the opportunity to let everyone know how much he hated his carrier.

"Hey baby cakes… You're early." Garcia greeted him as she swung open the door.

"You said ten o'clock and it's ten by my watch," He informed her.

"I didn't know we needed to synchronize our watches."

"We don't," He squeaked as she pulled him forward into the room.

He took a minute to look around the apartment because she'd added even more color by way of party decorations. Streamers, balloons and banners in every color imaginable intertwined with her décor in a way he thought screamed Penelope Garcia.

"You like?"

"It's definitely you." He said honestly.

"I thought it worked." She enthused.

"I don't understand how you pulled this off."

"You have that look on you face that tells me you doubt me."

"I don't doubt you… I just wonder how you do some of the things you do."

Garcia left him standing near the island counter that divided her living area from her kitchen. She began pulling trays of food from the fridge as he watched in utter fascination.

"Um… Isn't that a lot of food for four people?"

"Of course not silly." She reached over a tray of crackers with something that looked like a white cheese and chives and smacked him on the shoulder. "It's a welcome home party. You have to have a lot of food."

"But -"

"Just trust me on this Reid."

He decided that arguing with her didn't make any sense, so he shut his mouth and set about releasing Sergio from his carrier. The cat left his carrier with the attitude of someone leaving solitary confinement after years under lock and key. He stretched out his hind legs one by one, then in a flash, leaped up onto the back of Garcia's couch. He finally lay down and watched them as if he had nothing better to do than lay there and stare at them.

"Do you ever wonder what he's thinking?" Garcia asked.

"No…" Reid lied.

"You're lying."

He glanced up from another platter of fresh fruit Garcia had just set down on the countertop and met his best friend's knowing eyes.

"Okay… I wonder about it sometimes. It's stupid though because cats don't think the way we do." He said seriously.

"You take everything way too seriously." She scolded. "Don't you think it's kind of fun to imagine that Sergio might think we're both weird." She asked.

"You're not weird. You're just colorful."

She pulled a pitcher of red liquid from the refrigerator and smirked at him. "Why thank you sweet cheeks. You're not so bad yourself."

He felt his cheeks get hot so he decided to go to the couch and sit down with Sergio. The cat looked at him and meowed as it clawed at the throw blanket over the top of the couch. "Don't Sergio." Reid scolded.

"Oh don't worry about it."

"He'll ruin it."

"That's my mother's work." Garcia informed him. "Trust me when I tell you that it's indestructible."

Sergio yawned and began to wash one of his front legs.

"So when is she getting here." Reid wondered anxiously.

"Don't freak out my handsome junior G-man. When have you ever known a State employee to be on time?"

He was about to ask if that was rhetorical question when someone knocked on the door. He jumped up off the couch, which startled Sergio into leaping off the couch and running into Garcia's bedroom.

Garcia opened the door to reveal Violet with a woman Reid had never seen. The woman wore a dark blue suit with black buttons running down the front of the jacket. She was plump, with dirty blond hair and glasses perched on the end of a long nose that didn't match her square face.

"Hello Mary." Garcia greeted her eagerly.

The woman smiled and that smile made all the difference in the world to her face. "Hey Penelope… How are you?"

Reid kept his eyes on Violet who pinned her eyes on him and gave him a small smile. Her hair sticking up around her head again reassured Reid for some odd reason. He waved at her and gave her what he hoped was a comforting smile.

"I'm fine Mary. This is Dr. Spencer Reid. He was a neighbor of Violet's. He introduced her to Sergio."

"It's nice to meet you Dr. Reid."

He waved at her. "Likewise, Garcia has told me a lot about you."

"None of it bad I hope." Mary said as Garcia shut the door.

"No." He squeaked. "She, um… She said you knew each other at school before she dropped out."

"Yes… She and I were friends. We reconnected a couple of years ago when she started counseling families of murder victims."

"Hey Violet…" Garcia greeted the young girl.

"Hello," Violet seemed fascinated by the décor of the apartment. She kept looking around the place as if she'd never seen anything so interesting.

"We wanted to welcome you home from the hospital."

Violet nodded, but the smile left her face like Sergio running away from him the first day they lived in the same space.

"What's wrong?"

She ignored him and kept her eyes on Mary who was laughing at some story Garcia had been reliving. Violet sat in one of Garcia's easy chairs. Sergio suddenly reappeared and leaped into her lap. He licked at her chin as tears began rolling down her cheeks.

"Violet… What's wrong?" Mary asked kindly.

"I don't want to be here." Violet said. "You said we were going home, but I can't go home because my mom is dead." She suddenly shouted. "She didn't care about me but she was the only thing I had left."

She began to cry stormily as Sergio curled up in her lap. She stroked the cat and then hugged him to her chest like a life preserver in a storm.

"Violet," Garcia sat down and reached out for the girl's hand. "We know how hard this is for you."

"You don't know anything." Violet spat out. "Your m-mom wasn't m-murdered." She stuttered.

"I lost my mom and dad in a car accident when I was eighteen. A drunk driver killed them."

The silence that descended on the apartment was like a blanket of snow over mountaintops. Reid looked from one female to the next, but they didn't speak and all of them had tears running down their faces. Oh, boy what was he going to do now?

"They were?" Violet sniffed.

"Yes… I was so angry with them for a long time. Then I realized that I had to get on with my life. That life brought me lots of great things including my friends." She gestured to include Reid and Mary. "I promise it will get better."

"I don't know what to do." The teen cried. "I want to go home. I want my mother to come back even if she didn't want me around."

Reid's heart hurt for her in a way that surprised him. How often had he wished for his mother to be normal? He still wished it even though he was at peace, finally, with their unique lives.

"I know how you feel." He blurted out. "My mom is sick and can't come home."

Violet watched him as if she thought he might be lying to her. Then she gave him another little smile as Sergio stretched his neck under her scratching fingers.

"Really?"

"Yeah… Garcia is right that it will get better."

"We have a surprise for you." Garcia said, the former excitement of the day reemerging on her face like the sun over the eastern horizon.

Violet didn't look like she was in the mood for any surprise Reid thought, but there was no stopping Garcia now that her plans were in motion.

"Yes… We found a new family for you."

Violet just stared at her as if she was an alien life form. Sergio twisted in her hands and batted a paw at her chin when she stopped stroking his neck.

"I don't want a new family."

"I promise you'll like them." Garcia was not to be deterred.

"I don't want to meet anyone new." Violet protested as Sergio meowed in seeming protest of this idea.

"You don't have to meet anyone new." Garcia said as tears welled up in her eyes. "I've applied to be your foster mother if you'll have me."

Violet did not speak. Garcia's happy smile faltered on her face. Reid could only sit and stare at the sight unfolding before his eyes. Mary sat quietly in her chair observing Garcia and Violet as if she were used to seeing this type of reaction. Reid supposed she was in her work as a social worker.

"You don't even know me. Why do you want me?" Violet whispered.

"I want you to stay with me because I know what it's like to be alone. I was lucky that I didn't have to go into the system, but that's where you'll end up if I don't take you."

Violet's light blue eyes filled with tears again. "I don't want to go with strangers."

"I know we've only met once before today, but I like you Violet. You remind me of me when I was your age. I think we'd get along great if you'll give me a chance."

Violet looked at Sergio. "What do you think Sergio? Should I stay with Ms Garcia?"

Sergio meowed, jumped from Violet's arms and ran to Garcia. He leaped gracefully into her lap and lay down.

"I guess that means yes." Violet said and she gave Garcia a wavering smile. "Thank you."

"It's my pleasure. We're going to have a lot of fun."

"There's still paperwork and the question of where she'll sleep." Mary said.

"The couch pulls out and I've already found a new two bedroom house to rent." Garcia said.

"How did you know she'd say yes?" Reid blurted out.

Every female eye in the room turned to gaze at him. He felt his face getting hot. Sergio's green eyes watched him too and they seemed to be laughing at him, but he supposed that was just projection. At least, he hoped it was.

"Right… You're Garcia," He said by way of an explanation.

"Don't you ever forget it!" She said proudly.


	14. Sergio's Sixth Sense

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hey all... Here's the last chapter. Many thanks to my beta for giving me the idea for this story in the first place. Thanks to all for all your support and kind reviews._**

**_Sergio's Sixth Sense _**

Reid knotted his tie, pulling it straight over the buttons on his white dress shirt. He pulled on a white and black sweater vest with silver pinstripes and buttoned it over his tie. He surveyed his face in the mirror and decided that the dark circles were less pronounced then usual because he'd had two, glorious, headache free days.

"Let's see if we can make it three." He said to his reflection.

"Great… I'm talking to myself."

A meow from the region of his ankles startled him. "Hey Sergio… I can't play. I have to go to a funeral."

The cat looked up at him and meowed again, clearly agitated. "All right… But just for a minute."

The cat ran ahead of him as he hurried into the living room and sat down on the couch. Sergio leaped into his lap and lay down. Reid stroked the cats head for a minute as the cat flipped over on to his back offering his stomach to Reid.

Sergio liked this game. He liked to grab at Reid's fingers with his paws. Reid dangled his fingers over the cats belly and Sergio grabbed on with is claws and his teeth.

"Hey watch the teeth." Reid scolded as the cat stared up at him with baleful eyes.

"Why are you so upset this morning?"

Sergio jumped down and ran to the door. He scratched at it and then sat there staring in a way he hadn't done for a couple of days.

"Are you still waiting for Emily?" Reid got up and reached for his messenger bag. "She's not coming back buddy. I wish she was."

Sergio scratched at the door and meowed at Reid. "I gotta go. I'll be back soon."

The cat meowed again and left the door to wind between Reid's legs. "Alright, but you have to behave."

* * *

><p>The day was as sunny and bright as it had been on the day they'd laid Emily to rest in this very same cemetery. He was a little disconcerted when he heard they'd be coming here for Violet's mother's funeral. Garcia said it was some odd quirk of fate that both Emily and Marion would rest there. He didn't know if he believed in fate. He didn't like the idea that his life wasn't in his hands, that some all-powerful force led him around by the nose.<p>

He parked his ancient Volvo behind Garcia's caddy. Violet's mother had a Will, which surprised Reid because of how she treated her daughter in life. Then, he realized that it was still all about her. Marion hadn't wanted a funeral, just a short graveside service. He sighed. It didn't matter that his mother was in a sanitarium. At least their relationship had survived the trauma of her illness. He knew what she wanted and why she wanted it.

The over hanging branches of a large, leafy elm tree provided shade on the cool April day. He rolled down his window and looked back over his shoulder. "Be good and I'll be back in a little while." He said to Sergio in his carrier.

The cat hissed at him, but he didn't know if that was because Sergio hated the carrier or if it was because Reid was leaving him alone in the car. It didn't matter because Reid needed to get to the gravesite.

He hurried up the sloping, grassy hill following behind Violet, Mary and Garcia. There were a few cars that unloaded people dressed in black that headed in the same direction. He threaded his way around white and grey marble headstones that lay in long rows. Some of the headstones were so old; he couldn't read the dates on them because of weather damage. He shivered in the warm breeze that lifted his hair. He didn't want to lie in the ground when it was his time. He already specified in his Will that he wanted to be cremated and he'd left it up to Garcia to decide where to scatter his ashes. He smiled a bit as he hurried to catch up with the other mourners. He trusted her but he knew she'd be irritated with him dumping that decision in her lap.

Most of the people collecting around Marion's gravesite were strangers. The way Violet surveyed the gathering told him that she didn't know any of these people. She held tight to Garcia's hand as they made their way to the front of the mourners and closer to the casket.

Reid held back and watched the two from nearer the back. The sudden overwhelming sense of loss that filled him at the sight of Marion's coffin nearly knocked him to the ground. It all came back in an instant, the funeral service, carrying her coffin to its final resting place, and placing a rose on the polished wood. He could still smell the slight perfume of the flowers and the familiar scent of newly mown grass on the wind. The sun on his neck felt like a hot iron, rather then the soothing warmth of life giving light. Tears welled up in his eyes as he sidestepped away from the people collected around the grave. He wiped furiously at the tears. This was about Violet, not his grief over Emily and her death.

He squared his shoulders and turned his attention to the pastor reciting the 23rd Psalm. It was his favorite scripture even though he didn't know if he could agree with "Yea though I walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death I will fear no evil." Against his will, his thoughts returned to Emily. Had she been scared when she was impaled and bleeding on the floor of that warehouse? Did she know she was going to die?

Tears ran down his face as the pastor began the Lord's Prayer. He couldn't stop them because it was every word of Emily's service all over again. He barely noticed when the service ended and everyone began to leave. He finally looked up to see Garcia with her hand in Violet's as the young girl walked away from her mother's casket. He hastily wiped at his tears and put on his sunglasses.

"Hi Violet…" He squeaked.

"Hi." She said softly.

"How are you baby cakes?" Garcia asked.

"I'm fine. I brought Sergio." He blurted out.

"I think that's the best idea you've ever had." Garcia said.

"He's in the car."

They walked back to the car and Reid let the cat out of his carrier. Sergio went to Violet who picked him up and stroked his neck. "Hey Sergio…" She quavered and then she began to cry.

"I didn't mean to make her cry." Reid hissed to Garcia.

"It's okay. Sergio has a way with grief stricken people." She winked at him and he finally smiled a little.

"Can we go?" Violet asked. "I don't want to be here anymore."

"Of course," Garcia looked at Reid as he took the reluctant cat.

"I'm going to stick around for awhile." He told her.

"Alright… Please stop by when you're ready. I have ice cream."

He managed a smile. "I can't refuse ice cream."

"Thanks for coming." Violet said.

He gasped in surprise when the teen suddenly hugged him. "Um… you're welcome." He stuttered.

He watched Garcia drive away with Violet in her convertible until he couldn't see the bright orange car anymore. He glanced down the hill to Emily's grave, which was uncomfortably close to Marion Strong's gravesite. He didn't believe in signs from a supernatural being that might be in charge of the universe, but he did admit that he needed to go down and see Emily's grave. If something pushed him to go there or brought him close because of Violet, he didn't know.

"Should we go see her?" He asked the cat.

Sergio only stared at him.

Reid sighed and lifted the cat into his arms. "People say the dead know if you visit their graves. I'm not sure I believe that."

Sergio's bright eyes fastened on his face, but he didn't give any indication he understood what Reid had just said about Emily.

Reid sighed again and walked down the gentle sloping grass to Emily's grave. Her head stone stood out new and bright among the other graves. He blinked his eyes behind his glasses. The date, carved into the face of the gravestone, was like an accusation to him.

"She's here and she's not coming back Sergio." He said to the cat. "What do we do now?"

Sergio meowed loudly, jumped out of Reid's arms and ran up the hill. "Sergio come back here."

The cat was out of sight by the time he topped the hill above Emily's grave. He called for the cat feeling more ridiculous by the minute, but the cat didn't show his face or his tail. "I'm going to leave if you don't come back." He shouted the threat.

Something black dashed past the corner of his eye, forcing him to turn back toward Ms. Strong's grave. "What are you doing?"

He walked back up to the grave, which still had fake green grass covering the dirt that would fill the grave. Flowers surrounded it, and the green tent over the chairs set up around the site was still there but empty. He didn't see anyone, but the cat that sat there looking at the grave.

"What are you doing?"

He picked up the cat and stroked his back. "I wish you could talk and tell me what's going on with you."

Sergio meowed and tried to get out of his arms. He held on tight and took the cat back to his carrier. Sergio did not like this turn of events and he made his irritation known as Reid bundled him back into the towel and into the carrier. As he wrestled with the cat, he wondered at Sergio's behavior. Why did the cat run away from Emily's grave and go sit next to the grave of Violet's mother? Did the cat know something like maybe…? No! He refused to see that thought through to its conclusion. He was tired and he was letting his imagination get the better of him.

"We're going to see Violet and Garcia." He told the cat as he pulled away from the curb. "Then we're going home and I'm going to take a nap. I just need sleep."

* * *

><p>"Where to," The ticket agent asked the woman standing at the head of the line.<p>

"Washington DC," She responded flawlessly in French.

"I hope you enjoyed your stay in Paris." The ticked agent said.

"It was… fruitful."

The blond agent gave her the stamped ticket. "Please visit us again."

The woman only smiled at her. "Thank you."

She placed the ticket in her carry on bag and headed to the security check in. The line was long enough that she had time to ready her passport for customs. She flipped it open and gazed at her face with someone else's name. Soon… She'd be with her family and she'd begin the process of being Emily Prentiss again and this time, forever.

_**THE END**_

_**A/n dun, dun, dun... Possible sequel if the muse says so, if not, then you'll have to use your imagination as to what happens next. **_


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